CONTENTS
REGIONAL REPORT: ASIA PACIFIC
DUE DILIGENCE AND STATE RESPONSIBILITY
TO ELIMINATE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
I.Introduction ……………………………………………
.
1.1 Due Diligence Principle ………………………………………...…
1.2 Evolution of the Due Diligence Principle……………………….
1.3 Purpose, Scope and Methodology……………………………..
1
1
1
3
II. Situational Context (Regional) ……………………
7
2.1 Socio-political-legal context ……………………………………
2.2 An overview of violence against women in the Asia Pacific
region ………………………………………………………………..
7
III. Research Findings (Asia Pacific)…………………
3.1 A Methodological Note on the Survey for Asia Pacific
Region ………………………………………………………………
3.2 Prevention ………………………………………………………….
3.4. Protection …………………………………………………………
3.5 Prosecution and Investigation …………………………………
3.6 Punishment ………………………………………………………...
3.7 Provision of Redress ………………………………………………
8
31
31
33
45
49
52
53
IV. Conclusion - Best Practices ……………………..
55
Appendix 1: Socio-Political-Legal Context of the Asia
Pacific Countries ………………………………………………..
56
Appendix 2: Table ……………………….……………………..
72
Annex 1: Due Diligence Framework ……...………
93
Annex 2: Questionnaire …………………………….
99
i
ii
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Due Diligence principle
Public international law mandates that States
take action to prevent, protect, fulfill and
promote human rights. A State is obliged to take
positive measures to prevent human rights abuses
before they occur, such as adopting relevant
laws and policies, and to effectively prosecute
and punish them once they have occurred. While
most States regard themselves bound to comply
with an international standard of responsibility,
there is no consensus as to what States must do to
minimally comply with this responsibility.
Traditionally States are only responsible for their
own actions. Gradually, the obligation evolved to
extend from the duty to prevent human rights
abuses by the State and its agents, to also include
not those by non-state actors but also those
committed in the so-called ‘private sphere’. In
order to determine whether a State has met this
obligation,
public
international
law
has
developed the principle of due diligence. That is,
a State must act with due diligence to respect,
protect, fulfill and promote human rights.
This principle of due diligence has been
developed to increasingly apply to the issue of
violence against women, where in the majority of
the cases violence is perpetrated by non-state
actors, for example by a close male relative or
intimate partner. In fact, the most common form
of violence experienced by women globally is
intimate partner violence 1 . It is estimated that
one in three women experiences violence in her
lifetime. Situations of armed conflicts constitute
another context where women are increasingly
experiencing violence at the hands of non-state
actors, such as paramilitary and militia groups. It is
for instance estimated that between 250,000 and
500,000 women were raped in Rwanda during the
1994 genocide, that between 20,000 and 50,000
women were raped in Bosnia during the conflict in
the early 1990s, and that around 200,000 women
and girls were raped during the armed conflict in
Bangladesh in 1971.2
This ‘due diligence’ principle has been applied to
the situation of violence against women to such
an extent that it is now generally accepted to
include an obligation of the State to prevent,
protect against, prosecute, punish and provide
redress for acts of violence against women (“5Ps”).
The concept of due diligence shows tremendous
potential for holding a State accountable for acts
of violence against women perpetrated by nonstate actors in all spheres and for addressing more
effectively the pandemic at its sources. These
include violence committed within the home,
within the community and within the transnational
sphere, irrespective of whether they are
committed by the State, deemed to be
condoned by the State or committed by nonState actors.
1.2 Evolution of the Due Diligence Principle
The 1988 Velázquez Rodríguez case of the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights is the landmark
case which clearly set out the due diligence
principle and State responsibility for violations of
human rights caused by non-State agents. “An
illegal act which violates human rights and which
is initially not directly imputable to a State (for
example, because it is the act of a private person
or because the person responsible has not been
identified) can lead to international responsibility
of the State, not because of an act itself, but
because of the lack of due diligence to prevent
the violation or to respond to it as required by the
Convention”.3
Ibid, para. 146.
Velázquez Rodríguez v. Honduras, judgment of July 29,
1988, Inter-Am. Ct. H.R. (ser. C) No. 4, para. 172.
2
UN Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against
Women, A/61/122/Add.1, para. 112.
1
3
1
Several
international
resolutions,
outcome
documents and mandate holders have furthered
the understanding of this principle. General
Recommendation no. 19 (1992) of the Committee
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (“CEDAW Committee”) and the
United
Nations
General
Assembly
1993
Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against
Women underline that States are responsible for
private acts of violence against women if they fail
to act with due diligence to prevent, protect
against, investigate, punish and redress such acts
of violence.4 This point was later reiterated in the
Platform for Action of the Beijing World
Conference on Women as well as in a number of
regional and international documents and court
decisions. 5
Also, in 1994, the resolution
establishing the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on violence against women its causes
and consequences emphasized “the duty of
Governments to refrain from engaging in violence
against women and to exercise due diligence to
prevent, investigate and, in accordance with
national legislation, to punish acts of violence
against women and to take appropriate and
effective action concerning acts of violence
against women [emphasis added], whether those
acts are perpetrated by the State or by private
persons, and to provide access to just and
effective remedies and specialized assistance to
victims”. 6 The Special Rapporteurs have also
focused on this issue in a number of their thematic
reports.7
This principle of due diligence, has been further
fleshed out in a series of recent international and
regional opinions and cases. The CEDAW
Committee for example has addressed a State’s
due diligence obligation in its communications on
CEDAW, General recommendation 19: Violence
against women, 11° session, 1992, U.N. Doc.
HRI\GEN\1\Rev.1 at 84 (1994), para. 9. United Nations,
Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against
Women. General Assembly resolution 48/104 of 20
December 1993. A/RES/48/104, February 23, 1994, Article
4.c.
5 United Nations, Report of the Fourth World Conference
on Women, Beijing, September 4 to 15, 1995,
Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action approved at
the 16° plenary session held on September 15, 1995.
A/CONF.177/20/Rev.1, para. 1245b. See also 1994 InterAmerican Convention on the Prevention, Punishment
and Eradication of Violence against Women,
“Convention of Belém do Pará, para. 7(b), 1994.
6 Resolution E/CN.4/RES/1994/45, para 2.
7 See E/CN.4/1999/68, para. 25; E/CN.4/2006/61; and
A/HRC/7/6 (2008), paras. 69-115.
4
2
violence against women under the Optional
Protocol to CEDAW. In A.T. v Hungary8 the CEDAW
Committee found the State responsible for failing
to take all appropriate measures to prevent and
protect A.T. from repeated attacks by her
common law husband, L.F., despite her several
attempts to seek protection from the authorities.
This included the failure to enact relevant
legislations and to provide adequate shelters. In
Fatma Yıldırım v Austria,9 Fatma Yıldırım was fatally
stabbed by her estranged husband, Irfan Yıldırım.
Despite her repeated requests to the police that
he be detained, he was not. The CEDAW
Committee determined that the police knew or
should have known of the extreme danger faced
by Fatma Yıldırım, and its failure to arrest and
detain Irfan Yıldırım constituted a failure of its due
diligence obligation to protect her.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights,
in the case of Maria Da Penha v. Brazil concluded
that the State’s failure to prosecute or punish the
repeated violence faced by Maria da Penha,
perpetrated by her then husband, after over 15
years of the case pending before criminal court,
amounted to a violation of a State’s obligation
not only to prosecute and convict but also to
prevent these acts of violence. 10 In its recent
Campo Algodonero case, the Inter-American
Commission found Mexico in violation of the
American Convention on Human Rights and the
Convention of Belem do Para for its failure to
adequately prevent, prosecute and punish the
murders of three young women. 11 While
acknowledging that the duty to prevent is one of
“means and not results”, 12 the Court found that
given that the State knew of the existence of a
pattern of violence that has killed hundreds of
women and girls, the State “did not act with the
required due diligence to prevent the death and
abuse suffered by the victims adequately”,13 “nor
Communication No.: 2/2003, Ms. A.T. v. Hungary (Views
adopted by the CEDAW Committee on 26 January
2005, thirty-second session under the Optional Protocol
to CEDAW).
9 Communication No.: 6/2005, Fatma Yıldırım v. Austria
(Views adopted by the CEDAW Committee on 6 August.
10 Case 12.051, Report No. 54/01, Inter-Am. C.H.R.,
Annual Report 2000, OEA/Ser.L/V.II.111 Doc.20 rev. (2000).
paras. 55 and 56.
11 Inter-Am.C.H.R., Annual Report 2009, OEA/Ser.L/V.II.111
Doc.20 rev. (2000) and González et al. (“Campo
Algodonero”) v. Mexico, Inter-Am. C.H.R. Judgment of
Nov, 16 2009.
12 Ibid, para. 279.
13 Ibid, para. 284.
8
did it effectively investigate the incidents of
violence”. 14 In its latest decision, the InterAmerican Commission on Human Rights in the
case of Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales) v. United
States, 15 held the United States responsible for
police failure to respond to situations of domestic
violence with due diligence.
The European Court of Human Rights, in the case
of Osman v U.K. 16 held that the Convention
implied, under certain circumstances, a positive
obligation on the authorities to take preventive
measures where there is a ‘real and immediate’
risk. Later, in the case of Opuz v Turkey 17 , the
court also found that the authorities ‘knew or
ought to have known’ the ‘real and immediate
risk to the life of an identified individual’, and were
therefore obligated to take preventive measures,
that could have forestalled the eventual stabbing
and death of the applicant’s mother by the
applicant’s then husband. Most recently, the due
diligence principle has received much attention
from the Council of Europe, particularly in light of
the latest Convention on Preventing and
Combating Violence against Women and
Domestic Violence 2011 (Article 5) which compels
State parties to take the necessary legislative and
other measures to exercise due diligence to
prevent, investigate, punish and provide
reparation for acts of violence.
and provide redress for acts of violence against
women. It also has the objective to create a set
of indicators to better assess when this obligation
has been satisfied. The report further seeks to
highlight instances of good practices where this
obligation is deemed to have been satisfied, in
whole or in part, and to issue a set of
recommendations for achieving the same.
It is hoped that this report will be of use to those
stakeholders working towards the elimination of
violence against women.
These include
Government officials setting policies and
programmes, advocates working towards their
effective implementation, and those on the front
lines
tasked
with
ensuring
that
those
victims/survivors of violence ultimately benefit.
The report is divided into five sections:

Section I introduces the principle of ‘due
diligence’ and its evolution to the point
where today it is generally accepted
that a State has an obligation to prevent,
protect, prosecute, punish and provide
redress for acts of violence against
women, whether committed by State or
non state actors.

Section II sets out the purpose, scope
and methodology of the report. It
delineates the scope of the report,
including providing the definition of
violence against women used and the
various forms of violence, contexts and
groups of women focused on in
particular. Finally section II also shares
the methodology of the report, locating
it within the larger Due Diligence Project,
and describing the various inputs that
went into the elaboration of the report.

Section III delves into the situational
context of the Asia Pacific region,
detailing the relevant socio-political-legal
context within which the violence
against women and related State
(in)action is taking place. It also
elaborates on the forms of violence
particularly visible in this region, and the
manner in and extent to which the due
diligence principle has unfolded within
the region.
The European Convention and the latest InterAmerican Commission decision of Jesicca
Lenahan (Gonzalez) delivered a few months ago,
in particular have given impetus to the Due
Diligence Project, underlining its importance and
timeliness.
1.3 Purpose, Scope and Methodology
Purpose
This report explores the Due Diligence principle in
the context of the Asia Pacific region. The report
aims to enhance and add content to the
understanding of a State’s ‘due diligence’
obligation to prevent, protect, prosecute, punish
Ibid, para 389.
Report No. 80/11, Case 12.626 Merits July 21, 2011
16 Osman v. the United Kingdom, § 115, Reports 1998-VIII,
European Court of Human Rights Judgment dated 28
October 1998.
17 ECHR, Case of Opuz v. Turkey, Judgment of 9 June
2009/
14
15
3


Section IV lays out the findings of the
report. Trends are indentified, good
practices
illustrated,
and
recommendations made. These are
organized according to five areas in
which the due diligence principle is
applicable,
namely
prevention,
protection, prosecution, punishment, and
provision of redress. In this report, these
five areas are also referred to as the “5P’s”
Section V closes with conclusions and
reflections for future action.
Scope
The definition of ‘violence against women’
adopted by the report is based on the definition
contained in the 1993 UN Declaration on the
Elimination of Violence against women:
“Any act of gender-based violence that
results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual
or psychological harm or suffering to women,
including threats of such acts, coercion or
arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether
occurring in public or in private life.”
It considers violence against women to be any
act of physical, sexual, psychological and
economic acts of violence and notes that
violence against women can take many different
forms and occur in many different settings. The
forms of violence looked at in this report included
but were not limited to intimate partner violence;
rape and sexual assault; trafficking; sexual
harassment; forced sterilization; forced or early
marriage; harmful practices, such as female
genital mutilation; and femicide/ feminicide. And
the various settings observed were within the
family, the community, during times of peace and
in times of conflict.
The report does not limit itself to analysis of the
acts of violence themselves but rather explores
their structural roots such as patriarchy, the
relationship between social economic and
cultural rights on violence against women as well
as intersectionality between violence against
women and how they relate to other issues (e.g.
race,
ethnicity,
poverty,
religion,
sexual
orientation). On this latter point the report
attempts to take into account how being part of
4
a particular group (e.g. such as migrant,
displaced, or stateless women) affects that
woman’s likelihood of becoming a victim of
violence to begin with and her ability to seek
adequate relief after the fact.
Whereas the report does make a conscious
choice to use the term ‘violence against women’
rather than ‘gender based violence’ this should in
no way be deemed to be at the expense or to
the detriment of other forms of gender based
violence which are just as egregious and worthy
of attention and care. It does so rather for reasons
of limitation of scope and, the due diligence
principle being an international legal obligation,
for reasons of invoking particular language of
certain international treaties and instruments.
Nonetheless, where relevant, gender based
violence will be included throughout the course
of this report.
Methodology
This report is located within the larger Due
Diligence Project. The Due Diligence Project is a
research-advocacy project which aims to collect
good practices and State actions in the
formulation, implementation and enforcement of
policies, laws, procedures and processes as well
as develop due diligence standards and
indicators on State compliance with obligation to
prevent, protect, investigate, prosecute, punish
and provide redress in relation to violence against
women.
The Project has
components:
both
global
and
regional
(1) The global component consists of literature
review, which focus on studying the development
and evolution of the due diligence principle in
international law and how it is being commonly
applied today. It also looks at the context of
violence against women, its historical roots of
exclusion and invisibility in the human rights
discourse, as well as its later recognition as a
violation of human rights; and
(2) The regional component seeks to provide
primary data and regional specificities that
cannot be captured at the global level. This is
accomplished through a questionnaire; meetings
with regional experts; and continued publicly
accessible research on State compliance in each
region. The Project has divided the six regions of
the world as follows: Africa; Asia-Pacific; Europe;
Latin America and the Caribbean; Middle East
and North Africa; and North America and
Australia and New Zealand. This report falls within
the regional component of the larger Due
Diligence Project and seeks to capture those
findings which came out of the regional process
as well as feed into the larger global process.
Various inputs informed the substance of this
report:
(1) Literature Review: The Project has
conducted extensive literature review in
the following areas: including but not
limited to international, regional and
national jurisprudence; laws; national
action plans; State reports, submissions,
pledges and statements at international
fora and to international bodies;
academic journals and writings; and civil
society reports and statements in the
area of violence against women.
(2) Global expert meetings: The Due
Diligence Project has called two global
expert meetings to date. The first of the
meetings was held on 26-27 April 2011 in
Boston, USA.
The main goal of the
meeting was to brainstorm and strategize
on the meaning and content of the due
diligence principle and in particular the
duty to prevent, protect, prosecute and
investigate,
punish
and
provide
reparations. Another goal of the meeting
was to discuss and finalize the
questionnaire,
methodology
and
execution of the Due Diligence Project.
The second meeting was an expert
drafters meeting which took place in
June 2012 in Sofia, Bulgaria. The goal of
the meeting was to gather the drafters of
the regional reports altogether to
engage in a shared and intensive
focused discussion about the proposed
report, its structure and content including
thematic issues and analysis of the raw
data
to be
collated from
the
questionnaire and State input as well as
presentation of the findings.
(3) Regional consultative meetings: The Due
Diligence Project has also held and
participated in a number of regional
consultative meetings. The objective of
these consultative meetings is to obtain
qualitative data of systemic regional
patterns or issues, as well as to have a
focused discussion on thematic issues of
importance, which will feed into the
drafting of the report. These consultative
meetings have been organized as standalone events by the Project, scheduled
back to back with existing meetings and
teleconference
interviews
and
discussions. In the Asia Pacific region, a
consultation was held on the 4-5
September 2012 in Penang, Malaysia.
The results of the meeting are
incorporated into the production of this
report.
(4) Survey: One of the inputs to this project
has been a survey conducted on a
sample of countries in designated
regions of the world. For this purpose, the
project divided the world into six regions:
Africa (except North Africa), Asia Pacific,
Europe, Latin America, Middle East and
North Africa (MENA) and “North America,
Australia and New Zealand (NAAZ)”. A
sample of countries for each region was
then identified. The division of regions
and the sample of countries within it for
the purpose of this project can be
summarised as follows:
5
Table 1: Division of regions and sample countries for survey
Regions
Countries
1.
Africa (excluding North Africa)
Botswana, Congo, Kenya, Mozambique,
Senegal, South Africa, Uganda
2.
Asia Pacific
Bangladesh, China, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia,
Mongolia, Philippines, Taiwan, Solomon Islands
3.
Europe
Bulgaria,
Croatia,
Finland,
Germany,
Kazakhstan, Poland, Spain, Ukraine
4.
Latin America and the Caribbean
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala,
Jamaica, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela
5.
Middle East and North Africa
(MENA)
Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco,
Palestine, Tunisia
6.
Canada, United States of America,
Australia & New Zealand
Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United States of
America
The survey was carried out by
administering a questionnaire to a
sample of respondents from amongst
civil society organisations (CSO) or nongovernmental
organisations
(NGO)
working on violence against women. The
survey investigates CSO’s knowledge
and responses on existing State measures
and inquires into the challenges
encountered by civil society in their work
to end violence against women. The
survey questionnaire was distributed to
more than 300 CSOs in over 40 countries
globally. A total of 285 respondentorganisations responded to and returned
the questionnaires.
The criteria for
selection of NGO respondents include
those advocating against violence
against
women,
those
providing
intervention services to survivors of
violence against women such as safe
housing (shelter), legal and emotional
counselling or those whose mission or
objective includes ending violence
against women. It should be noted that
6
Nigeria,
Ireland,
the respondents were asked to give their
opinions on the questions asked, based
on their experience (e.g. regional, and
thematic), and hence their responses
may be taken as indicative of trends and
not as dispositive evidence of the same.
(5) Country profiles: 15-20 page dossiers for
each country selected for the study
describing a State’s compliance with its
due diligence obligation were created
based
on
publically
accessible
documents. These documents include
Government reports to UN Treaty Bodies,
and the Human Rights Council; country
visits by mandate holders; and countries’
own pledges and statements. Countries
also sometimes release data, or make
data accessible to the public. This data
could be part of the census, prevalence
studies, laws, policies, programs, and the
country’s own monitoring and evaluation
of its policies. The country profiles were
then circulated to focal country experts
for their comments and feedback.
CHAPTER II
SITUATIONAL CONTEXT
2.1
Socio-political-legal context
The reference to Asia Pacific is generally made
with regard to the geographical areas in or near
the Western Pacific Ocean
However, for the purpose of this project,
Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran are
designated to be part of the Middle East and
North Africa (MENA) region and Australia and
New Zealand as part of the CAANZ region.
In order to gain comprehensive understanding
about the issue of due diligence in the case of
violence against women in a particular country, it
is highly pertinent to have an overview of its sociodemographic, political and legal contexts.
Countries in the Asia Pacific region have varied
social, political and legal backgrounds. These
backgrounds are especially influenced by the
history and the population make-up of the
countries. Countries in particular sub-regions may
have similar geographical features but may differ
vastly in their normative socio-historical and
cultural aspects which inform the political and
legal systems. The Asia Pacific for the purpose of
this project can be further divided into sub-regions
as follows:




South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India,
Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
Southeast Asia: Brunei Darussalam,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao’s People
Democratic
Republic,
Malaysia,
Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Viet
Nam
East Asia: China, Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Japan,
Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Taiwan
The Pacific Islands: Federated States of
Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands,
Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa,
Solomon Islands, Timor Leste,Tonga,
Tuvalu
2.1.1 Social, legal and political context of the
South Asian region
The South Asia region is also commonly known as
the Indian subcontinent. It contains well over one
fifth of the world's population and about 34
percent of Asia’s population. It is also the most
densely populated geographical region in the
world,
with
wide-ranging
social-cultural
backgrounds. The socio-demographics of the
countries in South Asia are further presented in
Table 1 of Appendix 1.
2.1.2 Social, legal and political context of the
Southeast Asian region
Southeast Asia is a sub-region of Asia and consists
of two geographic regions: Mainland Southeast
Asia and Maritime Southeast Asia. Mainland
Southeast Asia comprises Cambodia, Lao’s
People Republic, Myanmar, Peninsular Malaysia,
Thailand and Viet Nam. Maritime Southeast Asia
is made up Brunei Darussalam, East Malaysia,
Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Timor Leste.
Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao’s People
Republic,
Malaysia,
Philippines,
Thailand,
Singapore, Viet Nam are member states of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The socio-demographics of the countries in
Southeast Asia are further presented in Table 2 of
Appendix 1.
2.1.3 Social, legal and political context of the East
Asian region
East Asia is another sub-region of Asia that covers
about 28 percent of the Asian continent. The subregion makes up more than 1.5 billion people
(about 38 percent) of the Asian population.
China, Hong Kong, Mongolia and Taiwan were
closely intertwined some 450 years ago during the
Q’ing Dynasty’s conquest. The British colonial
conquest of the Far East in the 1800s and its
occupation of the island of Hong Kong in 1841
resulted in the adoption of the common law legal
system in the island. In its newly constituted status
as the Special Administrative Region of the
People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong
7
characterizes a quasi-democratic government,
the head of which is directly accountable to the
Standing Committee of the National Peoples
Congress, the supreme state organ of the PRC.
Despite this accountability framework however,
pursuant to a promise of one-country-two-systems
which ensures that the laws and systems
previously in force in Hong Kong will not be
altered for at least the first fifty years after the
resumption of Chinese sovereignty over Hong
Kong, it has been able to maintain a
constitutional
framework
that
guarantees
fundamental rights of all people in the territory
and is able to independently legislate and devise
policies in most respects.
2.1.4 Social, legal and political context of the
Pacific Islands
The Pacific Islands consist of 20,000 to 30,000
islands in the Pacific Ocean. These islands
typically feature volcanoes with surrounding fertile
soils (the high islands) and reefs or atolls (the low
islands).
2.2
An overview of violence against
women in the Asia Pacific region
It is difficult to make an accurate assessment of
the forms of violence against women (VAW)
occurring in the Asia Pacific region without
conducting empirical studies on incidents and
prevalence of VAW in each country. However,
overviews or estimates of occurrence may be
gathered from literature discussing specific forms
of violence against women. Research and other
reports on specific forms of VAW in individual Asia
Pacific countries can contribute towards making
these overviews or estimates.
Based on literature search, the most common
forms of VAW that have been studied throughout
the world are domestic violence or intimate
partner violence, rape and sexual assault and
sexual harassment. More recently, international
bodies have increasingly channeled resources
towards inquiring into the issues of child marriages,
female genital mutilation and human trafficking
(especially in women and children). In certain
nations or regions, within the context of these
usual categorisations of VAW, specific situations of
violence appear to be peculiar to the social
contexts of that regions or nations. For instance, in
8
domestic violence cases, violence perpetrated in
relation to the issue of dowry is pervasive in the
Indian sub-continent. Inter- or intra-family violence
that targets women based on cultural or religious
precepts is increasingly recorded in religious and
tribal communities. Using acid to attack women,
as a result of domestic disputes or disputes in
intimate
relationships
can
generally
be
considered to fall under domestic violence.
However, in certain regions or countries, throwing
acids in order to disfigure women’s faces and
bodies has become a specific strategy used in
showing control and power over women in family
or intimate relationships and the statistics for such
incidents may require it to be investigated as a
distinct form of VAW.
The UN Women, in its Progress of the World’s
Women Report summarises available data on law
and prevalence of violence against women (UN
Women, 2011: 136-7). Table 2, which is extracted
from the UN Women’s summary presents the
situation of VAW in the Asia Pacific. According
Table 2, based on available data, the prevalence
of intimate partner violence in the form of
physical violence in the Asia Pacific ranges from
6% (Hong Kong) to 60% (Kiribati). Sexual violence
within the context of intimate partner violence
happens with the rate of between 3% (China and
Timor Leste) to 55% (Solomon Islands). Data about
female genital mutilation/ cutting is not available
for all of the Asia Pacific countries listed in the UN
Women report. Child marriage has a prevalence
rate of between 4% (Mongolia) to 60%
(Bangladesh) in the Asia Pacific region.
Situations of VAW in individual Asia Pacific
countries may be gauged from various national
data gathered by state agencies or by nongovernmental organisations. Data from India in
2006 show that 8.8% of all crimes reported based
on the Indian Penal Code are crimes against
women and this amounts to one crime against
women committed every three minutes. The
corresponding percentage for the year 2009 is
more than 17% (National Crime Records Bureau,
2009). This amounts to one crime against women
being committed every three minutes (National
Crime Records Bureau, 2006). More than 60% of
these crimes against women consist of torture and
molestation. A total of 185,312 crimes against
women were reported in India in 2007, compared
to 164,765 in 2006 (Williams, 2009).
Table 2: Overview of availability of law on VAW and prevalence of VAW in East Asia, Southeast Asia,
South Asia and the Pacific (Source: UN Women (2011))
*Small alphabets indicate various sources of data (further information can be obtained in UN Women (2011)
In Indonesia, according to a recent National
Commission report on violence against women
which compiled data from 280 institutions (state
and community) from around the country,
recorded cases of violence against women
showed dramatic increases from the 25,522 cases
in 2007 to 52,425 cases in 2008 and to 143,585
cases in 2009 (KOMNAS Perempuan, 2010). The
number of victims for domestic violence or
violence in a personal relationship was the highest
(95%) compared to violence perpetrated against
women in the community and violence
perpetrated by the state. VAW within the general
community form 5% of VAW in Indonesia in 2009.
Violence in the community includes, but is not
limited to sexual violence, sexual exploitation of
the girl-child, violence in the workplace, violence
against migrant female workers and trafficking of
women.
As already mentioned earlier in this report, in this
due diligence project a sample of countries in
Asia Pacific is selected for a survey research on
government measures in combating violence
against women.
The survey includes asking
respondents to report on the types of violence
experienced by women in their countries. Based
on these responses and on literature available on
this issue, a summary of the types of violence
occurring in the Asia Pacific countries may be
summarised in Table 3 below.
9
Table 3: Pervasive forms of violence against women in the Asia Pacific regions based on survey and
available materials
Bangladesh
China
Fiji
India
Indonesia
Hong
Kong
√
Mongolia
Philippines
Taiwan
√
Solomon
Islands
√
√
Domestic
violence
Trafficking
Abuse of girl
children
Rape and
sexual assault
Sexual
harassment
Child
marriages
Forced
marriages
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
Disfiguring
attacks
VAW in times
of war/
conflict
Female
genital
mutilation
Violence
against
migrant
women
Violence
against
indigenous
women
Violence in
cultural/
religious
contexts
Violence/
discrimination
in the
workplace
Other
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
Violence/
killing
related to
dowry
Acid
attacks
10
√
√
Sex
selection
of
children;
sale
of
women/
girls
by
family
members
Witchhunting
Violence/
killing
related
to dowry
√
√
√
In order to further understand the pervasiveness of
violence against women (VAW) in the Asia Pacific
region, a discussion based on the types of (VAW)
is made below.
2.2.1
causing her to permanently lose the sight of her
left eye18. Her husband had alleged that Rumana
had committed adultery. He was charged with
domestic violence but later died of unknown
causes while waiting for his trial in a Bangladesh
jail19.
Domestic Violence
Domestic violence may be said to be the most
common form of VAW throughout the Asia Pacific
region.
Domestic violence best describes
violence perpetrated by a person against his/ her
intimate partner. Such violence is often done to
gain or maintain power and control over the
partner. Alternative terminologies that are often
used to describe this form of violence include
wife/ spousal abuse/ battering, family violence
and intimate partner violence (IPV). Evidence
throughout the world indicates that domestic
violence occur cross-culturally and transcends
socio-economic backgrounds. The prevalence,
incidence and characteristics of cases of
domestic violence in selected Asia Pacific
countries are further discussed below.
Violence against women is a widespread threat
to women’s lives in Bangladesh (Sharmeen A.
Farouk, 2005). Domestic violence is the most
prevalent form of violence against women in
Bangladesh. Almost in every part of Bangladesh,
women are subjected to violence mainly in the
form of domestic violence related to dowry, and
acid attacks. The Bangladesh Demographic and
Health Survey (BDHS) of 2007 concluded that 49%
of ever-married women have ever experienced
some form of physical violence by their husbands
in their current or most recent marriages. The
survey also found that 58% of ever-married men
aged between 15 and 49 years had ever
physically abused their wives (NIPORT, 2007). The
Bangladesh
National
Women
Lawyers’
Association (BNWLA) received over 6,000 reports
of violence against women in 2010 (US
Department of State, 2011). Injuries and impact
of domestic violence suffered by women are
severe. One recent domestic violence case that
has received international outrage is the case of
Rumana Manzur, an Assistant Professor at Dhaka
University and a postgraduate student at
University of British Columbia in Canada who was
physically assaulted by her husband during her
visit home from her study in Canada. Her husband
bit off part of her nose and gouged her eyes
Dowry-related domestic violence has been on
the rise in Bangladesh and cases have doubled in
the last ten years (Odhikar, 2011). Ain O Salish
Kendra (ASK), a leading human rights and legal
aid organisation reported 502 cases of dowryrelated violence in the year 2011. Other than
being beaten and tortured psychologically,
women are also burnt to death in this type of
violence. Perpetrators are not only husbands but
also in-laws of the victims.
Domestic violence is highly prevalent in India. The
Third National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) of
India reported that between 2005 and 2006,
37.2% of ever-married women have experienced
spousal violence.
The Indian National Crime
Records Bureau shows that in 2006, one case of
cruelty against a woman by her husband or
relative occurred every nine minutes. Cases of
cruelty by husbands and other relatives have
increased dramatically from 50,703 in 2003 to
81,344 in 2008 (Ghosh and Choudhuri, 2011).
Violence committed against women in relation to
the issue of dowry is a pervasive form of domestic
violence. The National Crime Records Bureau
reported one dowry death case every 77 minutes
in 2006. The number of dowry deaths has
increased from 6,208 in 2003 to 8,172 in 2008.
Similarly, dowry prohibition cases have gone up
from 2,684 in 2003 to 5,555 in 2008 (Ghosh and
Choudhuri, 2011).
In China, unmarried women, women in customary
(as opposed to officially registered) marriages
and divorced victims of domestic violence are
especially vulnerable to (continued) domestic
violence due to the inadequacy of the law.
These groups are generally not included in existing
statistics on the prevalence of domestic violence.
The lack of economic power is a contributing
factor to women remaining in abusive
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/07/18/beatenstudent-will-never-see-again
19 http://www.torontosun.com/2011/12/05/accused-ofblinding-student-wife-husband-found-dead-in-cell
18
11
relationships. Women continue to make less than
men and thus, remain substantially discriminated
against in hiring. They are also legally required to
retire earlier than men, thereby resulting in a
reduction in their total pension and social security
benefits.20 In addition, sexual jealousy, patriarchal
beliefs, low female contribution to the household
income, low male socioeconomic status, alcohol
consumption and residence in regions other than
the South and Southeast appear to be significant
factors that can be associated with the
prevalence of domestic violence in China. 21
Various surveys have revealed that domestic
violence affects one-third of China’s 267 million
families 22 . County-level officials from women’s
federations report that nearly 80% of the cases
they handle involve domestic violence.
In Hong Kong, six out of every 100 women
experience physical violence at the hands of their
husbands or partners during their life 23 . The
number of reported spousal abuse cases in Hong
Kong increased sharply from 3,598 cases in 2005
to 6,843 cases in 2008.24 Broken down by gender,
the number increased from 970 to 5,575 for
women and from 39 to 1,268 for men. 25 It is,
however, also found that only 4% of actual
instances of violence are actually reported 26 .
Shelters and support services have shown multiple
increases in caseloads over the years since their
Age Diversity Report, Country Profiles, China,
Community Business.
21 William L. Parish, Tianfu Wang, Edward O. Laumann,
Suiming Pan and Ye Luo, Intimate Partner Violence in
China: National Prevalence, Risk Factors and Associated
Health Problems, International Family Planning
Perspectives, 2004, 30(4): 174-181.
22 Survey conducted by the All-China Women’s
Federation, 2008. Cited in the US State Department
Report 2009. Survey conducted by the China Law
Institute confirms similar findings. See also, Chan 2005.
23 United Nations Department of Economic and Social
Affairs, The World’s Women 2010: Trends and Statistics,
New York, 2010, p131.
24 The Hong Kong Council of Social Service report (Oct.
13, 2011) (available at
http://www.hkcss.org.hk/download/folder/fc/fc_eng.pdf
).
25 Women’s Commission, Hong Kong Women in Figures
2009, 2009, p50.
26 Chan Ko Ling, (2005), Study on Child Abuse & Spouse
Battering: Report on Findings of Household Survey,
Retrieved from Department of Social Work and Social
Administration, the University of Hong Kong website:
http://www.swd.gov.hk/doc/family/Report%20on%20find
ings%20of%20Household%20Survey.pdf, last accessed 11
September 2012.
20
12
inceptions 27 . Physical violence was the most
frequent form of violence followed by sexual
violence. Such violence frequently involved
pushing, grabbing, slapping, kicking or hitting with
an object as opposed to threats to inflict physical
harm. Unwanted sexual touching was the most
prevalent form of sexual abuse. Former partners
were more likely perpetrators of violence as
compared with current partners according to
women. 28 Female foreign domestic workers and
mainland women who marry Hong Kong men
appear to suffer from higher rates of domestic
violence.29 The tragic death of a mainland wife
and her children at the hands of her abusive
spouse reignited calls in the community for police
and relevant government departments to provide
a more coordinated response to at-risk victims
who had already been flagged by the system.
The incident took place in Tin Shui Wai, a township
where a large number of newly arriving mainland
and other ethnic immigrants have been settling
upon their arrival in Hong Kong. They lead fairly
isolated lives whilst here and find it difficult to
integrate into the broader community. In April
2004, the recent immigrant from mainland China
had sought assistance from social workers, shelters
and had been in regular contact with the police
regarding the abusive tendencies of her husband.
On the day of her death, she went to the police
to lodge a report that her husband had
threatened to kill her and her children. When the
police officer failed to contact a social worker, he
called her home to ascertain whether her
husband was in. When no one answered he
assumed he was not home and thus, the
complainant and her children were not at risk. He
sent her home where the abuser was in waiting,
leading to the tragic death of the entire family.30
The lack of coordination between government
agencies in this case was highly criticised as a key
failure in managing the problem.
In its recent Concluding Observations on Hong
Kong’s Third Report under the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the United
See, for example, the figures presented in Margaret
Fung Tee Wong, Multidisciplinary Response in Domestic
Violence, at p. 317 and Harmony House, 2008, Annual
Report 2007-2008, Hong Kong, China, Harmony House.
28 Ibid., p. 2.
29 Maggie Chen, Domestic Violence Cases Rising in
Hong Kong, May 14, 2007 (available at
http://www.voanews.com/tibetan-english/news/a-282007-05-14-voa2-90291732.html).
30 Review Panel on Family Services in Tin Shui Wai, 2004.
27
Nations Human Rights Committee noted with
concern the high incidence of domestic violence
in Hong Kong, including domestic violence
against women and girls with disabilities. 31 The
Committee recommended that “Hong Kong,
China should increase its efforts to combat
domestic violence by, inter alia, ensuring effective
implementation
of
the
Domestic
and
Cohabitation Relationships Violence Ordinance
(DCRVO)… [and] should ensure the provision of
assistance and protection to victims, the criminal
prosecution of perpetrators of such violence, and
the sensitization of society as a whole to this
matter.”32
In 2011, 104,315 cases of domestic violence were
reported in Taiwan. Authorities prosecuted 3,292
persons for domestic violence, and convicted
2,469 persons 33 .
In the same year, 36,791
protection orders were issued to domestic
violence victims.34 A significant barrier to women
seeking intervention is the socio-cultural stigma
attached to making a formal report about a
‘domestic’ issue 35 . There is also a perception
within Taiwanese culture that only ‘abnormal’
men perpetrate abuse, which serves to isolate
victim/survivors through the belief that they are
alone in their experience. 36 Typically, persons
convicted in domestic violence cases were
sentenced to less than six months in prison. 37
Difficulties with obtaining protective orders have
also been reported, some indicating that even
though the law requires issuance within four hours
of filing a request, judicial issuance can in fact
take days.38
UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding
Observations on the HKSAR, China’s Third Periodic Report
on the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, Advanced Unedited Version (on file with authors),
10 April 2013.
32 Ibid, Paragraph 18.
33 US Department of State Human Rights Report Taiwan
2011
http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/in
dex.htm#wrapper
34 Id.
35 US Department of State Human Rights Report Taiwan
2011
http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/in
dex.htm#wrapper
36 Taiwan Women Web ‘Domestic Violence’
http://taiwan.yam.org.tw/womenweb/hvdraft/index_e.h
tml
37 Id.
38 Amnesty International Human Rights Report Taiwan
2009 http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/taiwan/report2009
31
In 2004, Indonesia passed Law No. 23/2004 on the
Elimination of Domestic Violence. Since its
passage, reports of domestic violence have gone
up significantly. Domestic violence accounted for
96% of the 143,585 cases of violence against
women reported in 2009. Records of cases of
divorce in religious courts show a significant
proportion (30-40%) of the cases involve domestic
violence39.
Violence committed against women by their
spouses or partners remains a serious problem in
the Philippines. 40 In 2008, the National
Demographic and Health Survey introduced a
specific “Women’s Safety Module” that aims to
capture incidences of VAW experienced by
women between the ages of 15 to 49 years. Thus
survey found that one in five women in the
Philippines
have
experienced
domestic
violence.41 While the law criminalises the physical,
sexual, and psychological harm or abuse to
women or children by family members, there
were 9,225 reported cases of domestic violence
filed under the Anti-Violence Against Women and
Their Children Act (2004) (RA 9262) in 2010. 42
Reports of emotional, non-physical violence were
the most common (23%), followed by physical
violence (one in seven), and lastly sexual
violence.43 Reported incidences of physical injury
peaked in 2001 at 5,668 cases, but have been
increasing again since 2008, with 2,018 cases
reported in 2010.44 Further, a report produced by
the Asian Development Bank and various United
Nations agencies states that, relative to the size of
the Philippines' population, official statistics reflect
a "limited number" of actual incidents.45
Komnas Perempuan, Ten Years of Reform: Progress
and Setbacks in Combatting Gender-based Violence
and Discrimination (in Indonesian), March 2008.
40 See Tess Raposas, Marriage & Domestic Violence: A
Fatal Combination in the Philippines, Yet Divorce is Illegal,
Women’s Int’l Perspective (2008), Available at
http://www.thewip.net/contributors/2008/01/marriage_d
omestic_violence_a_f.html
41 National Statistics Office (Philippines), Philippines: 2008
National Demographic and Health Survey, Key Findings
(2009) Available at
www.measuredhs.com/pubs/pdf/SR175/SR175.pdf
42 Republic Act 9262: Anti-Violence Against Women and
Their Children Act (2004). The law criminalizes physical,
sexual or psychological violence against women. See
Section IV below for more information on RA 9262.
43 Philippines: 2008 National Demographic and Health
Survey, supra note 12
44 Id.
45 Asian Development Bank (ADB). October 2009.
Philippines: Enhancing Gender-Responsiveness in the
Justice Sector. Seagen Waves. Vol. 3, Issue 1. at 75
39
13
In Timor Leste, a Demographic and Health Survey,
which included a module on domestic violence,
was conducted in 2008. The survey indicated a
lifetime prevalence of physical partner violence
of 38% and 12-month prevalence of 28% for the
country (Ellsberg et al, 2009).
Women in the Pacific Islands experience some of
the highest levels of violence against women in
the world.46 Approximately two-third of women in
the Pacific have experienced physical or sexual
violence from their partners.47
The Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety
Study in 2009 found that 64% of women aged 1549 have experienced physical or sexual violence
from an intimate partner. 48 Based on this study,
18% of women aged 15-49 reported physical
violence by someone other than an intimate
partner
and
18%
of
women
reported
experiencing sexual violence by someone other
than an intimate partner, with forced sexual
intercourse being the most frequent type of
sexual violence. One in ten women reports sexual
violence during pregnancy. About half of the
women who reported domestic violence also
reported that they have ever been raped by their
spouses. The study further found that 56% of
partnered women reported emotional abuse,
including being insulted, belittled or humiliated,
intimidated or threatened with harm. Additionally,
58% of partnered women reported experiencing
controlling behaviour. The most common forms of
controlling behaviour are her husband’s/
partner’s insistence on knowing a woman’s
whereabouts at all times, his expecting her to ask
permission before seeking health care and his
excessively jealous behaviour when she speaks
other men. Husband’s intoxication and jealousy
and wife’s disobedience have been cited as
<http://www.adb.org/Documents/Periodicals/SEAGEN/vol03/article09.asp>
46 Ending Violence Against Women in the Pacific with
UN Women, UN Women National Committee Australia,
http://www.unwomen.org.au/Content%20Pages/Get%2
0Active/Factsheet%20-%20Web.pdf (last visited Mar. 12,
2012).
47 Id.
48 Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety Study: A
study on violence against women and children,
Secretariat of the Pacific Community for Ministry of
Women, Youth & Children’s Affairs, 63 (2009), available
at
http://www.spc.int/hdp/index.php?option=com_docma
n&task=cat_view&gid=39&Itemid=44.
14
factors
that
behaviour.
provoked
husband’s
violent
Domestic violence is also the most common form
of VAW in Fiji (UNFPA Pacific Sub Regional Office,
2008). Domestic violence is criminalised under the
Domestic Violence Decree, which came into
effect in 2009. Police statistics for 2003-2007
indicate that domestic violence made up around
13% of all Crimes Against the Person cases for the
corresponding years, where women made 82% of
the victims.
Thirteen women were killed in
domestic violence cases during this period
(UNFPA Pacific Sub Regional Office, 2008). It
should be noted that women’s NGOs were
reported to have received a higher number of
cases of domestic violence in a comparable
time-frame than the police (ibid.) and this
indicate that incidents of domestic violence may
be more pervasive than presented by the official
statistics.
In Bhutan, no systematic collation of VAW data
can be found. However literature surveyed
between 2004 and 2008 yielded some information.
The statistics of the Royal Bhutan Police show that
in 2005 there were 71 reported cases of domestic
violence in the capital. In 2006, 57 cases of
domestic violence were treated at the National
Referral Hospital in Thimphu, with the most
common reasons cited for the violence being
alcohol intoxication of the husband (28%),
adultery of the husband (28%) jealousy of the
husband (19%) and adultery of the wife (5%). In
2007, the hospital recorded 120 cases of domestic
violence. In five of these cases, violence was
instigated against wives who were pregnant.
Forms of abuse against wives in Bhutan include
victims being pushed out the house and left
outside with nowhere to go and being tied up
and beaten. The physical impact may range
between injuries to the body to being
permanently or temporarily incapacitated. The
psychological impact included continued fear in
the victims even after marriages had long been
dissolved or the victims had long separated from
the perpetrators.
In Brunei Darussalam, the Brunei Times reported in
2008 that the statistics of the Community
Development Department showed that domestic
violence in the country had risen in recent years
from 81 cases in 2000 to 214 in 2007. The 2007
figure represented 214 cases of violence by
husbands against wives.
cases (the first, second and third being drug,
robbery and road accident cases).
Cambodia,
in
cooperation
with
several
international agencies, for several years, has been
collating national data on health, which include
some data on domestic violence. The
Cambodian Demographic and Health Survey
2000 found that 23 percent of women aged 15 to
49 who had ever been married had experienced
violence in their families.
Three-quarter of the
women reported violence by a husband (alone or
with others). The Health Survey, in 2005, surveyed
3000 people in 13 provinces on attitudes relating
to domestic violence. Of all respondents surveyed,
80% of women said they knew a husband who
used physical violence with his wife and 25% of
women said their husbands had been physically
violent toward them. Forms of violence range
from psychological violence to sexual violence.
Psychological abuse also comes in the form of
controlling behavior of the husband. Cambodia
has a traditional moral code of behaviour, the
Chbab Srey, that states that women must serve
and respect their husbands at all times. Advice
includes ‘never tattle anything to your parents
about your husband or this will cause the village
to erupt’, ‘never turn your back to your husband
when he sleeps’ and ‘never touch his head
without first bowing in honour’. Such a code may
influence women’s help-seeking decisions.
In Vanuatu, a survey of 3919 household in all six
provinces and the two urban centres of the
country conducted in 2008 shows that 60% of
women in Vanuatu have experienced domestic
violence in the forms of physical and/or sexual
violence in their lifetime by husbands/partners
(Ellsberg et al, 2009). In 90% of these cases,
women suffered severe violence. As a
consequence, the rates of injuries are alarming:
more than two in five women have been injured
more than three times in their lifetime. Among
those who have been injured, one in five now has
a permanent disability. Intimate partner violence
during pregnancy is also common. Fifteen
percent of ever-pregnant women have been hit
during the pregnancy, and nine percent have
been hit or kicked in the stomach while pregnant.
In 2004, the Asia Foundation and the local Lao
Women's Union released the first research survey
on violence against women in Lao’s People
Democratic Republic. From their survey they
found that domestic violence ranked third in the
frequency of cases brought before the courts
between 1996 and 2000. It moved up to second
during 2001-2002. The criminal court, representing
all provinces in Laos, reported that sexual
violence offenses rank fourth in the frequency of
There are differing acceptability rate of domestic
violence based on countries. Table 4 shows that
on average, one-third of the population in the
Asia Pacific countries surveyed think that
domestic violence is justified in certain
circumstances. In another study, a survey of 176
men in Pakistan, 46% of respondents feel that a
man has a right to exercise violence against his
spouse (Fikree, Razak and Durocher, 2005).
Amongst men who have ever abused their wives
(n=86), 74.7% have this view. The corresponding
percentage for men who reported never to have
abused their wives (n=89) is 18.0. The Economist
reported that in India and Sri Lanka, slightly more
than 50% of women think that in certain
circumstances, a husband is justified in hitting his
wife (The Economist Online, 2012). One study
shows that 65% of Bangladeshi males think that
beating their wives is justifiable [Immigration and
Refugee Board of Canada (2004)].
15
Table 4: Perceptions about domestic violence in selected Asia Pacific countries
0
20
Percentage of respondents
40
60
80
100
Indonesia
Viet Nam
China
India
Malaysia
Thailand
Domestic violence is sometimes justifiable
Domestic violence is never justifiable
Source: UN Women, 2011
Studies show that many Pacific people, both men
and women, believe that men are justified in
committing violence against their partner.49 The
Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety Study50
revealed that a majority of the women studied
(66%) believe that a wife should obey her
husband even if she disagrees 51 and 73% of
women surveyed agreed with one or more
justifications for partner violence52.
A survey conducted in Hong Kong found that
violence committed by non-partners was more
likely to be classified as a crime by victims (45%)
as compared to that inflicted by partners or
someone familiar to them (14%). The study found
that few victims reported the most recent incident
of violence to the police whether when
experienced at the hands of a partner or a nonpartner (12%). Sexual violence was less likely to be
reported to the police (3%) as compared to
incidents of physical violence (23%). It appears
that women were more likely to approach the
police for assistance where they had been injured
or if they considered the violence to be serious or
a crime. Minor incidents were not reported and
Id.
Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety Study: A
study on violence against women and children,
Secretariat of the Pacific Community for Ministry of
Women, Youth & Children’s Affairs, 63 (2009), available
at
http://www.spc.int/hdp/index.php?option=com_docma
n&task=cat_view&gid=39&Itemid=44.
51 Id.
52 Id.
49
50
16
/or were dealt with by the victim or within the
family. These attitudes are telling with respect to
expected response behaviours of victims of
different categories of violence.
2.2.2
Child marriages and forced marriages
The detrimental effects of young people,
especially girls, entering into marriages, are quite
well established by scholars and researchers
worldwide. International legal standards and
norms have been established to require marriage
to be contracted only with the free and full
consent of the parties. There is also a legal
presumption that full and free consent may only
be given when a person is of “full age” (Universal
Declaration of Human Rights 1948, Article 16).
When someone is a child, he/she cannot be
considered to be sufficiently mature to make an
informed decision about acquiring a life partner.
This, in turn, means that a marriage attempted
between parties one of whom is a child cannot
be considered to have obtained the “full and free
consent” of each of the parties.
Child marriages is a common practice in
Bangladesh even though the law requires that
women be 18 years of age and men 21 years of
age for a legal marriage to take place. Many
women are forced into marriage, especially at a
young age (Immigration and Refugee Board of
Canada, 2006). One study showed that about
40% of all marriages could be considered child
marriages, but the incidence of child marriage is
difficult to quantify because many marriages and
births are not registered (US Department of State,
2010). UNICEF reports that about half of all girls in
Bangladesh are married by the time they are 15
years old (Nettleton, 2006). In 2005, UNICEF also
reported that Bangladesh had one of the highest
early marriage rates in the world and these
marriages are more common in impoverished
areas (Immigration and Refugee Board of
Canada, 2006). A UN report shows that child
spouses are more vulnerable to domestic
violence (ibid).
In Indonesia, a 2005 report showed that 9.2
percent of Indonesian girls between the ages of
15 and 19 were married, divorced or widowed,
with rates of early marriage being more prevalent
in the rural areas. Direct evidence of forced
marriage and child marriage is generally
unavailable. While Law No. 23 of 2002 on Child
Protection recommends that the legal age for
both men and women be 18 years, it does not
mandate the age. Legally, the age of consent for
marriage is 16 for girls, and 19 for boys, but
marriage can occur at younger ages with
parental consent and at the judiciary’s discretion.
2.2.3
Rape and sexual assault
Rape and sexual assault is another common form
of VAW in Bangladesh. In 2011, Odhikar received
711 reported incidents of rape. Out of these cases,
119 involved victims who are gang-raped and in
54 cases, the women were subsequently killed.
However, prosecution of rapists was not consistent.
In June 2011, a teenage girl in Tongi was gangraped by a group of men led by her landlord’s
son. After raping her, the perpetrators doused her
body in kerosene and lit it on fire, causing her
death. Human rights groups report that the actual
number of rapes is higher because rape victims
often do not report the incident due to social
stigma attached to being raped (US State
Department, 2010). NGOs report that many
women do not report incidents and perpetrators
are rarely prosecuted fully (Ain O Salish Kendra
(ASK) et al., 2004). Furthermore, the brutal crossexamination of victims is a deterrent to reporting
(ibid.). Rural and minority women are particularly
vulnerable to violence, including rape, and have
less access to justice than other women (ibid.).
Rape is underreported in Fiji due to shame on the
part of the survivor/victim, pressure (not to report)
from family and religious institutions, and lack of
police response to reports or rape (UNFPA Pacific
Sub Regional Office, 2008).
Incidents of
defilement (statutory rape) where victims are girls
aged 13-16 years are recorded to be high in Fiji.
In Indonesia, KOMNAS Perempuan's data show
that from 1998 to 2010, there were 295,836 cases
of violence against women a quarter of which
involved sexual assault. 53 This translates to 28
women being sexually assaulted in Indonesia
each day. Sexual and physical abuse against
children has also been reported. The National
Commission for Children’s Protection (NCCP) or
Komisi Nasional Perlindungan Anak in Indonesia
reported that, in the first five months of 2012, it
had recorded 1,826 cases of violence, sexual
assault and incest against children, with 68% of
sexual abuse involving close relatives. 54 NCCP
also estimates that between 70,000 and 90,000
children were victims of sexual abuse in 2010.
Rape is a prevalent crime in India. The National
Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) indicated that in
2006, one rape occurred every 29 minutes in the
country. The Bureau also reported 21,397 cases of
rape in 2009. Conflicts in contentious regions of
the country leave women vulnerable to rape at
the hands of the armed forces that are protected
from prosecution by the Armed Forces Special
Powers Act. 55 Rape is prohibited under the
Federal Penal Code, but the provision includes an
exception that does not allow a husband to be
charged with the rape of his wife unless they are
separated (see, Exception in section 375). The
Domestic Violence Act of 2005 includes a civil
remedy for marital rape, but the government
shows hesitation to amend the Penal Code to
criminalize marital rape. 56 Sexual assault is more
KOMNAS Perempuan, Press Release: Guarantee Safety
on Public Transportation (27 September 2011) Available
at:
http://www.komnasperempuan.or.id/en/2011/09/pressrelease-guarantee-safety-on-public-transportation/
54 Id.
55 Human Rights Watch, India: Repeal Armed Forces
Special Powers Act (Aug. 18, 2008),
http://www.hrw.org/news/2008/08/17/india-repealarmed-forces-special-powers-act.
56 CEDAW, Combined Second and Third Reports of
States Parties, India, 97 (Oct. 19, 2005), http://daccessddsny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N05/572/16/PDF/N0557216.
pdf?OpenElement.
53
17
prevalent than rape, but is not recognised as such
in the Penal Code. The rape provision in the Penal
Code is limited to forced penetration by a man
against a woman. Without penetration, the
perpetrator would likely be charged with insulting
the modesty of the woman, which carries a
sentence of only one year. The NCRB reports
38,711 cases of molestation under crimes against
women in 2009.
While Philippine law criminalises rape, including
spousal rape, enforcement of the law is weak.
Between January and November 2010, the PNP
reported 4,776 rape cases.57 Reports of custodial
rape and sexual abuse exist from 2010, usually of
women who are members of minority groups such
as suspected prostitutes, drug users, and lower
income individuals arrested for minor crimes. Girls
constitute 66% of the 4451 victims of child abuse
(dealt with by the Department of Social Welfare
and Development) in the Philippines between
January to June 2010. Approximately 44% of the
girls were victims of sexual abuse while 2% of
sexual exploitation. Child prostitution is a serious
problem. In 2003, in pursuant of a law against
child labour, the Department of Labour and
Employment (DOLE) ordered the closure of 22
establishments for allegedly prostituting minors. In
2009 DOLE issued new regulations that facilitate
the immediate closure of
establishments
suspected of using children for commercial sex
acts, with court hearings to determine the validity
of the government's complaint to be held at a
later time.
In the Solomon Islands, Amnesty International
(2004) reported that three-quarters of women in
the country suffered from direct personal trauma
including rape, threats of violence and
intimidation. According to Solomon Islands Family
Health and Safety Study of 2009, in 2007, after the
physical devastation and social destruction
caused by the tsunami at the end of 2006, reports
of various forms of sexual violence including rape
were widespread. Boyfriends, strangers, and
acquaintances
were
the
most
common
perpetrators of sexual violence.58
US Department of State (2011), 2010 Country Reports
on Human Rights Practices: Philippines, US Department
of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor,
Washington, DC.
58 Id.
57
18
In 2011, 6,568 reports of rape or sexual assaults
were filed in Taiwan. In addition, Taiwanese
officials estimated that the total number of sexual
assaults was perhaps ten times the number
reported. 59
Both underreporting and light
sentencing have been linked to the social stigma
attached to rape. In explaining legal and judicial
barriers to adequate enforcement of laws and
protection
of
women,
some
Taiwanese
academics point to a long history of valuing
women’s chastity and ‘purity’ above women’s
lives.60
Reports indicate that as many as 35% of
the sentences handed down in 2011 were less
than the mandatory minimum.61
Half of women in Vanuatu have experienced
violence by a non-partner since age 15. In most
cases the perpetrators are male family members
or boyfriends. The prevalence of sexual abuse
against girls is one of the highest in the world.
Nearly a third (30%) of women have been sexually
abused before the age of 15. For 28% of all
women surveyed, their first sexual experience was
forced.
2.2.4
Sexual harassment
Sexual harassment is a conduct of a sexual nature
that is unsolicited and unwanted by the receiver
(victim/ survivor) of the conduct.
Sexual
harassment has the purpose and effect of
violating the victim’s dignity or of creating an
intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or
offensive environment for the victim.
Sexual harassment is pervasive in Fiji. Research
conducted by the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement
(FWRM) indicated that one in three women
interviewed reported being sexually harassed at
some point in their working lives (UNFPA Pacific
Sub Regional Office, 2008).
US Department of State Human Rights Report Taiwan
2011
http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/in
dex.htm#wrapper
60 ‘Rape Law Needs to be Reformed,’ Taipei Times,
March 22, 2011
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/20
11/03/22/2003498779/2
61 Taiwan Women’s Rights - Discrimination and Violence http://www.intlhumanrights.com/TaiwanWomenRightsDis
crimination.htm
59
Sexual harassment is reportedly widespread in
India but there is no legislation to protect against
this form of violence in the workplace. NGOs
report that sexual harassment is a problem in India,
especially in free trade zones and informal work
settings. 62 The NCRB reported 11,009 cases of
sexual harassment in 2009 with a conviction rate
of 49.2%. 63 Sexual harassment outside of the
workplace is common and reporting is low due to
lack of confidence in the police.64 A UN survey of
women in Delhi showed that two out of three
women have been victims of sexual harassment
varying from verbal harassment to stalking.65 India
is also a part of the rising trend of separating the
sexes on public transport due to the pervasiveness
of sexual harassment/assault on buses and
trains.66
A study conducted by the Indonesian Ministry of
Health in 2004 found that 90% of women
(compared to 25% of men) claimed to have been
subjected to some form of sexual harassment in
the workplace.67
Evidence would suggest that female migrant
domestic workers are especially vulnerable to
sexual harassment in Hong Kong and especially
unable to seek help due to language and legal
barriers. 68 In Yuen Sha Sha v. Tse Chi Pan, 69 a
National Alliance of Women, India Second NGO
Shadow Report on CEDAW, 221 (Nov. 2006),
http://www.iwrawap.org/resources/pdf/India%20Shadow%20report.pdf.
63 National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Home
Affairs, 1 (2009), http://ncrb.nic.in/CII-2009-NEW/cii2009/figure%20at%20a%20glance.pdf.
64 U.S. Department of State, 2010 Human Rights Reports:
India, 49 (Apr. 8, 2011),
http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/160058.p
df.
65 Id.
66 Jonna McKone, Separate but Equal: A Winning Policy
for Women in Transit?, THE CITY FIX, Dec. 21, 2010,
http://thecityfix.com/blog/separate-but-equal-awinning-policy-for-women-in-transit/.
67 US Department of State (2007), 2006 Country Reports
on Human Rights Practices: Indonesia, US Department of
State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor,
Washington, DC.
68 Doris Lee, “Keep our Women Safe at Work! But are
Migrant Domestic Workers not Women?” (Oct. 7, 2011)
(available at
http://www.aaf.org.hk/en/opinion/memberscommentar
y/354-2011-10-07-04-30-10.html). See also, Puja Kapai,
Minority Women: A Struggle for Equal Protection, in
Baines, Barak-Erez and Kahana (eds.), Feminist
Constitutionalism: Global Perspectives, Cambridge
University Press: 2012, Chapter 18, who outlines the
equality argument with respect to catering for the
response-behaviours of minority victims of violence as
62
female plaintiff discovered that the defendant
had placed a camcorder in her bedroom and
had been recording her undressing and sleeping
for a period of over five months.70 The court held
that the defendant’s act constituted sexual
harassment and rewarded the victim punitive
damages and damages for emotional injury.71
Sexual harassment remains a problem in the
Philippines despite the enactment of the The AntiSexual Harassment Law (1995). This law was
enacted primarily to protect and respect the
dignity of workers, employees, and applicants for
employment as well as students in educational
institutions or training centres. The law only
recognises cases perpetrated by an individual in
one of these three contexts that are in a position
of authority over others and who use such power
to incur sexual favours from his or her subordinates.
While the acknowledgment of sexual harassment
is progressive, the narrow law leaves many victims
without a mechanism for redress.
2.2.5
Female genital mutilation
Female genital mutilation (FGM), generally
referred to as female circumcision in Indonesia,
has been reported to be practised in parts of East,
Central and West Java, North Sumatra, Aceh,
South Sulawesi, and on Madura Island. 72 While
there are no statistics on the rates of the practice,
a report conducted by the University of
Indonesia’s
Women’s
Research
Graduate
Program in 1998 found that it is largely symbolic,
and the type of procedure used is left to the
discretion of local traditional practitioners who
rely on local tradition. While the Ministry of Health
banned FGM by doctors and nurses in 2006, there
is no law banning the practice by local
practitioners. The 1998 study found that
procedures used range from the cutting or
pricking of the clitoris to draw blood, to merely
scrapping or wiping the clitoris. In some
part of a State’s due diligence obligation to effectively
protect all women against violence and the principle of
non-discrimination.
69 (1997), case citation
70 Singer, 11 Ind. Int'l & Comp. L. Rev. at 232.
71 Id. at 234-235.
72 United States Department of State, Indonesia: Report
on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or Female Genital
Cutting (FGC) 1 June 2001. Available at
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/46d57879c.html
19
ceremonies, a plant root is used symbolically and
the girl is not touched. Usually performed within
the first year of life, often on or around day 36 or
40, local traditions vary and the practice may
take place as late as ten years old. The study also
discovered that some communities believe that
the practice is ‘sunnah’ (recommended or
encouraged by the prophet Muhammad) while
others believe it is “wajib” (mandatory) under the
teachings of Islam.
2.2.6
Trafficking in women and girls
Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent,
Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons defines
“trafficking in persons” as the recruitment,
transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of
persons, by means of the threat or use of force or
other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of
deception, of the abuse of power or of a position
of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of
payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a
person having control over another person, for
the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall
include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the
prostitution of others or other forms of sexual
exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or
practices similar to slavery, servitude or the
removal of organs.
Many of the Asia Pacific countries are countries of
origin and transit for human trafficking. A few of
the countries are also countries of destination for
trafficking activities. The US State Department
produced yearly reports of global human
trafficking situations and based on these reports
and other relevant materials the situations of the
Asia Pacific countries in relation to human,
especially women, trafficking may be summarised
in Table 5 below (for Tier Ranking guide see US
Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report
2013, page 55-6273):
Accessible at
http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/210737.p
df
73
20
Table 5: Situations of human trafficking in selected Asia Pacific countries
COUNTRY
Bangladesh
TIER
RANKING
2
STATUS
(SOURCE,
TRANSIT,
DESTINATION)
Source
Brunei
2
Destination
China
3
Source, transit,
destination
DESTINATION (SOURCE)/
COUNTRIES
Internal/ domestic trafficking
Gulf, Maldives, Iraq, Iran,
Lebanon, Malaysia, Singapore,
Brunei, Europe
Indonesia, Bangladesh, China,
the Philippines, Malaysia
Internal trafficking
Destination:
All continents (Locations of sex
trafficking of Chinese women
are sometimes collocated with
concentrations of Chinese
migrant workers in factories,
and mining and logging
camps.
VICTIMS
Men,
women,
children
Men, women
As
source
(inc internal
trafficking):
Men,
women,
children
As
destination:
Women,
children
PURPOSE OF
TRAFFICKING
NOTES AND OTHER INFORMATION
Forced
labour,
sex
trafficking;
domestic
servitude and bonded
labour (in the case of
domestic trafficking)
Force labour, forced
prostitution
Trafficked persons often travelled willingly at
first but was subsequently misled or fraudulently
contracted leading to forced labour and
sexual abuse situations
As source for:
Forced labour, force
prostitution,
brideselling
As destination for:
Commercial
sexual
exploitation
and
forced labour
Traffickers recruited girls and young women,
often from rural areas of China, using a
combination of fraudulent job offers, imposition
of large travel fees, and threats of physical or
financial harm, to obtain and maintain their
service in prostitution.
Source:
Burma, Vietnam, Laos,
Singapore, Mongolia,
Democratic People’s Republic
of Korea
(DPRK), Russia, Europe, Africa
Fiji
2
Source,
destination
Internal trafficking
As source:
Children
Legal migrant workers who came to work as
domestic workers may found themselves in
situations of debt bondage, nonpayment of
wages,
passport
confiscation,
abusive
employers, and confinement to the home
Low- and medium-skilled Chinese workers
migrate voluntarily to other countries for jobs in
coal mines, beauty parlors, construction, and
residences, but some subsequently face
conditions indicative of forced labor, such as
debt bondage, withholding of passports and
other restrictions on movement, non-payment
of wages, physical or sexual abuse, and
threats.
Forced
labour,
sex
trafficking/
forced
Victims in Fiji are allegedly exploited in illegal
brothels, local hotels, private homes, and other
21
Source:
Thailand
Hong Kong
2
Source, transit,
destination
Destination:
Canada
prostititution
rural and urban locations.
As
destination:
Men, women
Family members, other Fijian citizens, foreign
tourists, and crew on foreign fishing vessels
have been alleged to participate in the
prostitution of Fijian children. Some Fijian
children are at risk of human trafficking if their
families follow a traditional practice of sending
them to live with relatives or families in larger
cities. These children may be subjected to
domestic servitude or may be coerced to
engage in sexual activity in exchange for food,
clothing, shelter, or school fees.
Women,
men, children
Forced
prostitution
labour;
Women,
men, children
Forced labour due to
debt bondage, sex
trafficking,
sexual
abuse while working as
domestic workers
Source and transit from:
Mainland China, Philippines,
Indonesia, Thailand and other
parts of Southeast Asia;
Colombia, Nepal
India
2
Source, transit,
destination
90% of cases
are
internal
trafficking
22
Destination:
(Other than inter-state) Middle
East
Source:
Nepal,
Bangladesh,
Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Russia,
Azerbaijan, Serbia, Kazakhstan,
and Afghanistan
It is estimated that 20 to 65 million citizens are
trafficked for forced labour, tricked into debt
bondage to work in industries such as brick
kilns, rice mills, agriculture, and embroidery
factories. Physical and sexual abuse are often
used as coercive means in bonded labour.
Lower castes in society are most vulnerable.
Increased mobility, rapid urbanization, and
growth in certain industries may encourage
inter-state trafficking. Children are increasingly
lured into sex trafficking and forced labour.
There are increasing reports of women and girls
being sold or coerced into forced marriages in
states with low female-to-male gender ratios.
Such marriages are sometimes followed by
incidences of the brides being forced into
prostitution or labour by their new “families.”
Child brides who run away from marriage
become further vulnerable to sex trafficking.
Indian women and girls are offered temporary
marriages, through agencies, to Middle Eastern
men, with promise to work but end up being
sexually trafficked.
Female children are trafficked into India from
source countries for sex.
Indonesia
2
Source
(Much less so
destination
and transit)
Some reports
of internal
trafficking
Destination:
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab
Emirates, Qatar, Malaysia,
Taiwan, Singapore, Oman,
Hong Kong, other Asian and
Middle Eastern countries.
Internal trafficking Increasingly,
to Maluku, Papua, Batam and
Jambi Provinces for sex
exploitation.
Women, men
Forced
labour,
sex
trafficking,
domestic
servitude
Significant source areas are West Java, Central
Java, East Java, West Nusa Tenggara, East
Nusa Tenggara, and Banten.
Women become victims of trafficking during
their attempt to find work abroad through
licensed
and
unlicensed
rexcruitment
companies known as PJTKIs. There is a
moratorium on permits to work abroad for
domestic workers to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria,
and Jordan due to reports of abuse of (mostly
legal) domestic workers. 70% of Indonesian
overseas workers are women.
Children are trafficked into Malaysia, Singapore
and Hong Kong through Riau Islands,
Kalimantan and Sulawesi, for sex.
23
Malaysia
2 Watch
List
Destination
(Much
less,
source
and
transit)
Mongolia
2
Source, transit,
destination
Philippines
2
Source
(Much less so
destination
and transit)
Internal
trafficking is
significant
24
Source:
Indonesia, Nepal, India,
Thailand, China, Philippines,
Burma, Cambodia, Laos,
Bangladesh, Pakistan and
Vietnam, Mongolia
Destination:
(Especially
for
forced
prostitution) Macau, Hong
Kong, and South Korea; China,
Malaysia,
Philippines,
Singapore; transit for trafficking
from China and Russia
Destination:
Malaysia, Singapore, Hong
Kong, Republic of Korea,
China, Japan, Saudi Arabia,
United Arab Emirates, Qatar,
Kuwait, and Syria.
Internal trafficking from rural to
urban, especially tourist, areas
Women,
men, children
Forced
labour,
trafficking
sex
Women,
men, children
Forced
labour,
trafficking
sex
Women,
men, children
Sex trafficking, forced
labour
Indonesia is the destination for some cases of
trafficking of Uzbekistani and Colombian
women for sex exploitation.
Voluntary documented and undocumented
migrant workers often later become trafficked
victims. They subsequently encounter forced
labour or debt bondage at the hands of their
employers, employment agents, or informal
labour recruiters.
Many young foreign women are recruited
ostensibly for legal work in Malaysian
restaurants and hotels, but subsequently are
coerced into the commercial sex trade.
Recent evidence shows women from African
countries (Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana) are now
brought into Malaysia in this manner.
Mongolian women, some of whom are
handicapped, are subjected to involuntary
servitude or forced prostitution after entering
into commercially brokered marriages, often to
South Korean or Chinese men.
A significant number of Filipina women working
in domestic service in foreign countries also
face rape, physical violence, and sexual
abuse. Skilled Filipino migrant workers such as
engineers and nurses are also subjected to
conditions of forced labour abroad.
Child sex tourism remained a serious problem
occurring through internal trafficking. It caters
to sex tourists from Northeast Asia, Australia,
New Zealand, Europe, and North America.
Taiwan
Solomon
Islands
1
2 Watch
List
Destination
(much
less
source
and
transit)
Source:
Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia,
mainland China, Cambodia,
the Philippines, Bangladesh,
India
Men,
women,
children
Forced
labour,
trafficking
sex
Source,
destination
Source:
China, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Philippines
Men, women
Forced
labour,
trafficking
sex
One of the major trafficking schemes in the
Philippines is the mail-order bride system which,
despite the enactment of an Anti-Mail-Order
Bride (MOB) Law in 1990, continues to thrive as
poverty increases. An estimated 50,000 to
100,000 Filipinas listed on internet sites that hold
themselves out under the guise of dating
services
(see,
www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/vaw/ngocont
ribute/Gabriela.pdf).
Women from mainland China and southeast
Asian countries came to be sexually exploited
or forced into bondage labour after being
lured through fraudulent marriages and
deceptive employment offers. Taiwanese
women are recruited through classified ads to
travel to Australia, the US, or the UK and are
then forced into prostitution through debt
bondage.
Foreign women were recruited from their home
countries for legitimate work, often paying
large sums of money in recruitment fees, and
upon arrival are forced into prostitution in
logging and fishing areas.
25
2.2. Violence experienced by women in
certain parts of the Asia Pacific as a result
of their specific situations and sociocultural contexts
Women’s locations, cultural contexts or socioeconomic positions often put them at risk of
suffering specific forms of violence. Certain
cultural contexts in the Asia Pacific leads to the
justification by communities of ‘punishing’ women
using violence. Women are sometimes subjected
to these “punishments” as a result of judgements
of community members about their conduct
based on the understanding and interpretation of
cultures and religions in their communities. Forms
of violence women and female children receive
may be the results of
26
collective decision making by community leaders
(‘punishment’ edicts issued by religious leaders),
acid throwing with an underlying objective to
shame and blame women and restrictions on
women’s sexual and reproductive decision
making as well as violating the rights to life of
unborn female fetus.
Women’s specific socio-economic situations may
make them vulnerable to different forms of
violence. Female conomic and political migrants
are often open to abuses of people in authority or
local community members of their destination
countries or provinces.
A summary of these forms of violence is presented
in Table 6:
Table 6: Violence against women suffered as a result of women’s specific situations or socio-cultural contexts
VAW suffered by women
as a result of their
specific situations or
socio-cultural contexts
Violence
perpetrated
against women due to
religious
or
cultural
constructions
of
behaviour
Acid attack/ acid
throwing
Countries where
cases notably found
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, India
Nature of cases
In Bangladesh, poor, rural women are especially vulnerable to violent punishments as a result of fatwas (religious
prescriptions for specific problems) issued by village elders and clerics for perceived religious transgressions
(Refugee Review Tribunal, 2010; Human Rights Watch, 2011). Edicts are issued against women by unauthorised
village elders (mostly men), usually for alleged moral misbehavior, resulting in the women’s public humiliation, their
ostracisation or violence against them. Ain-o-Salish Kendra (ASK) compiled news reports of at least 330 incidents of
this type of VAW over the last ten years.
Bangladesh:
Victims are women and girls who had refused romantic proposals by the attackers. Women are left disfigured and
blind. Some attacks were fatal. Commonly used acids are hydrochloric and sulphuric acids. In 2011, 57 of whom
and 19 children were attacked with acids (see, odhikar.org). Women were 82% of the 3000 cases estimated
between 1999 and 2011 (Acid Survivors Foundation). Young women (aged 10-19) are especially targeted especially
as a result of them declining the perpetrators’ marriage proposals (55% of all acid attack cases) (Clark, 2005).
Husbands throw acids at wives in domestic violence cases. A survivor of one such case said: “I woke up around
midnight and found my husband sitting on a chair with his eyes bloodshot out of anger. I asked him what had
happened, but no response. He just walked up to me with a glassful of liquid and poured it down over my head”
(ASTI, n.d.).
India:
Male perpetrators disfigure women by throwing acid on their faces as a form of revenge for rejecting them as
suitors, refusing to have sex or for what is perceived as women defying custom. Women also become victims of
acid attacks resulting from family feuds and land disputes. Unregulated sale of acids may exacerbate cases. About
72% cases targeted women of all classes, ethnicities and religions. In 2010, 27 cases of acid attacks on women were
reported. Recently two new sections were added to the Indian Penal Code to deal with acid attack cases. Section
236A provides for a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment for the offence of causing grievous
hurt or death by acid attacks.
Compulsory family
planning leading to
forced abortion and
China
One-child policy and laws have lead to people’s decisions to abort female foetuses in first pregnancies. Women
are also coerced to abort second pregnancies or go through sterilisation to avoid flouting the one-child policy.
Although related laws prohibit this, enforcement is poor. Illegal forced abortion and sterilisation have been widely
27
sterilisation
Discrimination,
exploitation and violence
against female migrant
workers
Destination
countries:
Hong
Kong,
Malaysia, Taiwan
Migrating from:
Mainland
China,
Indonesia,
Philippines
Violence
and
discrimination
against
indigenous women
Indonesia
documented.74 Family members are often coerced into convincing the woman to abort the child or to agree to
sterilisation. Non-compliant family members will have their property seized or be beaten. 75 In some provinces, there
is evidence of promotion of ‘the use of ‘unspecified remedial measures’ to cause abortion and sterilisation. 76 Also,
despite the prohibition against using ultrasound technology for sex-selection purposes, couples have routinely been
doing so and have opted to abort female foetuses. This is particularly prevalent in rural China and in cases where
couples have an existing girl child. According to the 2000 census, 117 boys are born for every 100 girls, reflecting a
growing disparity that is causing a shortage of girls, especially in the cities. This has exacerbated women’s
vulnerability to violence.
Hong Kong has a large population of migrant female domestic help (FDH) many of whom had to accept work with
abusive or unfair conditions. Many employment agencies engage in illegal and abusive practices such as charging
workers a “fee” for placing them in Hong Kong at a job, and then withholding the workers’ pay, passports, or bank
cards while the worker pays off the fee, which may be up to 80% of his or her salary for almost a year. 77 Other
abuse by employment agencies includes paying workers lower wages and forcing them to work longer hours than
legally allowed.78 Employers often do not provide FDH with private space in the house. They are also vulnerable to
physical and sexual violence by employers.
More than 80% of Indonesian migrant workers are women, and 90% of these women are employed in private homes
as domestic workers. About 10% of the population of the Philippines, mostly women, are overseas workers and a
substantial proportion works as domestic helpers. The labour laws of many of the countries of destinations of these
migrant workers do not provide them with a minimum wage, health insurance, freedom of association, an eighthour workday, a weekly day of rest, vacation time, or safe work conditions. Because “women’s work” often has low
value in these countries, it is poorly paid, and migratory women workers are excluded from labour and social
legislation including policies against discrimination. Because of their position as migrants, women often fear seeking
redress for their injuries for fear of retaliation, for fear of not being taken seriously by the authorities, or being
humiliated or blamed.
In countries with multiple ethnic communities, indigenous women may face a double marginalisation: as indigenous
people and as women. In Indonesia (which hosts between 40-50 million indigenous people) women are limited by
government policies that do not acknowledge their rights to their traditional lands and natural resources, and thus
face displacement and lack of access to necessary resourced such as water (AIWN, 2007). As women, they are
denied access to decision making both at the household and community level. Access to health services is limited,
Freedom House 2010.
Chinese Human Rights Defenders, 5 November 2008, p. 8.
76 US Country Reports, US 11 Mar. 2010, Sec. 1f.
77 U.S. Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report 2011 (October 8, 2011) (available at http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2011/164232.htm).
78 Concluding Comments of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, U.N. Doc. CEDAW/C/CHN/CO/6August 7-25, 2006, Par. 41.
74
75
28
especially regarding maternal care. In Papua, more then ten women in one thousand die giving birth. The giving of
indigenous land to private companies that employ militias and trans-migrant workers increases violence in
indigenous communities and forces many indigenous women into trans-migratory work, where they face increased
risk of murder, sexual harassment, rape, and kidnapping.
Violence against women
in
conjunction
with
conflict or war
Philippines, Solomon
Islands
Between 2000 and 2010, 41% of households in Mindanao reported having experience displacement fundamentally
caused by armed groups’ movements (Vinck & Bell, 2011). Women are children are disproportionately affected. The
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that some 80 percent of internally displaced persons (IDPs)
caused by armed conflicts in the region are women and children.
In the Solomon Islands violence against women was exacerbated by the civil war from 1998-2003 (Amnesty
International, 2004). Those responsible for violence against women in this period were very rarely prosecuted, given
a lack of reporting and there are evidence of male relatives actively discouraging women from reporting rape to
police. A large number of Malaitan women reported to have been raped in attacks by Guadalcanal militants in an
effort to humiliate their people. Women were forced to prostitute to the militia. Furthermore, women who were
pregnant or ill could not seek medical attention because of reduced ability to travel since travel was at the
discretion of militants in some areas, resulting in the breakdown of public health. However, when surveyed for the
Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety Study 2009 only two women identified militants as perpetrators of violence
against them. The study suggests that women were afraid of retaliation if they shared their stories even if after years
later. Underreporting may also be because women tend to lump militants and strangers together when reporting
about their experiences of violence.
29
The consequences for women and girls of
experiencing violence or abuse are serious and
wide-ranging. The WHO states that violence
against women and girls is “associated with a
wide range of health problems in women such as
injuries,
unwanted
pregnancies,
abortions,
depression, anxiety and eating disorders,
substance use, sexually transmitted infections and,
of course, premature death.” 79 The patriarchal
culture and the heightened shame associated
with a failed marriage, often equated to failure in
life, blame for which is usually attributed to the
women in these relationships, have rendered
women in intimate relationships increasingly
vulnerable. More problematic is the culture of
subservience that has sometimes put female
children at risk of incest at the hands of elder men
in the family such as fathers or brothers.
Violence against women had traditionally been
seen as an internal family affair and it was rarely
discussed in the open. Likewise, sexual assault in
minor and more egregious forms such as rape,
were also taboo and victims were often silenced
by family and friends. Women’s vulnerability was
exacerbated by circumstances of financial
dependence, family relationships, particularly
where children or in-laws were involved, and
parental and societal pressure to stay in
relationships. All of this meant that the ecosystem
surrounding the women itself condoned silence
and tolerance.80 As women began to participate
more actively in the socioeconomic life of the city,
however, there has been a growing awareness of
the extent and scale of the problem.81
Margaret Fung Tee Wong, Multidisciplinary Response in
Domestic Violence, in Ko Ling Chan (ed.), Preventing
Family Violence: A Multidisciplinary Approach, Hong
Kong University Press: 2012, Chapter 13, at p. 317.
81 Tang, Chung and Ngo (2000).
80
World Health Organization, Women and Health:
Today’s Evidence, Tomorrow’s Agenda, Geneva, 2009,
p11.
79
30
CHAPTER III
FINDINGS OF THE REGIONAL STUDY
The due diligence principle in the
Asia Pacific region
This section of the report provides an overview of
forms of state intervention in VAW cases as a
measure to indicate that due diligence is taken
directly or indirectly by governments in the Asia
Pacific region in dealing with the various forms of
violence perpetrated against their female citizens.
The survey conducted as part of this project aims
at giving additional and supportive evidence to
the observation of due diligence principle by
governments in the case of violence against
women. The discussion of the result of the survey
in relation to the five elements of due diligence is
made further below.
3.1. A Methodological Note on the Survey
for Asia Pacific Region
3.1.1. Process
In the process of conducting the survey on CSO/
NGO for the Asia Pacific region, survey
questionnaires were distributed to a set of
sampled countries82. There are ten countries in the
sample for Asia Pacific and they are Bangladesh,
China, Fiji, Hong Kong 83 , India, Indonesia,
Mongolia, Philippines, Solomon Islands and Taiwan.
A total of 53 questionnaires were completed and
returned by respondents. Table 1 of Appendix 2
Prior to the administration of the survey, a pilot survey
was conducted in Malaysia using five CSO respondents.
The objective of the pilot is to assess the general validity
and reliability of the survey questionnaire. The results of
the pilot survey were used to improve on the survey
questionnaire, not only for the Asia Pacific region but for
all regions designated for the purpose of the project.
83 Hong Kong is considered independently of China for
the purpose of this project. Although on July 1, 1997,
China resumed sovereignty over Hong Kong, an
arrangement of “one country, two systems” is agreed to
operate until 2047. Under this model, Hong Kong
maintained its own government except in matters of
foreign and defense.
82
shows the number of completed and returned
questionnaires by the respondent-organisations.
Organisations from India submitted the highest
number of filled questionnaires while Fiji and
Solomon Islands returned only one questionnaire
each. On the outset, this may reflect the extent to
which non-governmental organisations exist and
active in particular countries. It is not possible in
this project to accurately ascertain the total
number of organisations working towards the
eradication of violence against women in each
of the countries due to the inaccessibility of such
information to external researchers. Countries like
India, the Philippines and Indonesia are known to
have active civil society especially in women’s
rights advocacy. China has more than 50,000
women’s organisations affiliated with the Chinese
Communist Party’s All-China Women’s Federation
(ACWF)84. However, the project encounters great
difficulties in getting access to a wide range of
organisations and is able only to obtain responses
from six organisations, two of which are the socalled “salons” in universities.
3.1.2 The Respondents
Organisations selected for the survey are those
that are involved in various ways in eliminating
violence against women in their countries. The
activities of the CSO/ NGO span research,
advocacy, legal reform, support services and
training on a variety of forms of violence. In most
cases, the organisations are each involved in
more than one of these activities in relations to
more than one forms of VAW at a particular time.
Table 8 presents the areas of work of the CSOs
based on their responses.
84
See, Howell, 2003.
31
Table 8: Areas of work of respondent-CSOs
Areas of work
Research
%
Rape and sexual assault
Sexual harassment
Domestic violence
VAW in cultural/ religious context
VAW in times of war/ conflict
Trafficking
Female genital mutilation
Indigenous (tribal) women and VAW
Violence against girl children
%
43.4
34.0
60.4
37.7
13.2
28.3
0
24.5
41.5
At a glance, the respondent-organisations in the
Asia Pacific sample countries are involved mostly
in work related to domestic violence, rape and
sexual assault, sexual harassment and violence
against girl-children. At least 60% of the
respondent-CSOs are involved in work related to
domestic violence in all categories of activities.
The form of violence with the lowest involvement
from the CSOs is female genital mutilation.
Advocacy, training and support services are
areas of work that are more common for the
CSOs. Research and law reform are lesser areas
of focus and are perhaps pursued by
32
Advocacy
Law Reform
%
66.0
56.6
84.9
56.6
26.4
41.5
11.3
32.1
54.7
43.4
39.6
60.4
30.2
9.4
26.4
7.5
15.1
35.8
Support
Services
%
62.3
54.7
66.0
41.5
15.1
35.8
7.5
24.5
54.7
Training
%
56.6
58.5
75.5
43.4
15.1
32.1
5.7
32.1
50.9
organisations whose members have the relevant
backgrounds.
This project assesses the observation of due
diligence by using five categories of analyses in
the context of measures to eradicate VAW:
prevention, protection, prosecution, punishment
and provision of redress. The discussions about
due diligence of Asia Pacific governments about
eliminating VAW are based on the existence of
government measures or efforts within these
categories as inferred from review of available
materials
and
findings
of
the
survey.
CHAPTER III
1. PREVENTION
Adoption of substantive legal protection
and remedies to address VAW
One of the elements of due diligence in the case
of VAW is that governments take necessary steps
to prevent the occurrence of VAW. An important
method of fulfilling this obligation is by enacting
specific laws that address the issue.
In 2011, UN Women published the findings of its
survey on the availability of legislation to deal with
various forms of VAW, around the world. Table 9
presents an overview of the legislation available
based on regions of the world. Based on Table 9,
54% of countries with available data in the Asia
Pacific have legislated for domestic violence
laws; 51.6% of the countries have legislated for
sexual harassment law 22.9% of the countries
have legislated for law on marital rape. The Asia
Pacific region is divided into East Asia and the
Pacific and South Asia. In East Asia and the
Pacific, about 55% of the countries surveyed have
legislation
for
domestic
violence.
The
corresponding percentage for South Asia, on the
other hand is about 45%. About 40% of the East
Asian and Pacific had not legislated for sexual
harassment law by the year 2011. Slightly more
than half of the countries in South Asia have
legislated for sexual harassment law. For marital
rape, countries in the Asia Pacific show very low
(slightly over 20%) availability of legislation
prohibiting this form of violence.
Table 9: An overview of countries in the world with legislation for specific forms of VAW (Source: UN
Women, 2011)
A further review of literature an materials allows the authors to summarise the laws and legislation
available to intervene in VAW cases, in selected countries in Asia Pacific. This is presented in Table 10
below.
33
Table 10: Legal intervention for VAW cases in the Asia Pacific
Country
General provisions useful for women
Bangladesh
Article 27 of the Constitution states, “all
citizens are equal before law and are
entitled to equal protection of law”
Article 28(2) ensures that women shall
have equal rights with men in all
spheres of the State and public life
Specific provisions on violence against women
Dowry Prohibition Act 1980
Cruelty to Women (Deterrent Punishment)
Ordinance 1983
Other related interventions
In April, 2011, a directive was issued by the High
Court to ensure verification of birth certificate
during marriages to stop child marriage.
Repression against Women and Children Act 2000
Acid Crime Prevention Act, 2002
Article
29
declares
equality
of
opportunity for all citizens in respect of
employment or office in the service of
the Republic, despite of their religion,
race, caste, sex, etc
Human Trafficking Prevention and Control Act, 2012
Family Courts Ordinance, 1985
Penal Code
China
The Constitution of the People’s
Republic of China: “Women in the
People’s Republic of China enjoy equal
rights with men in all spheres of life, in
political, economic, cultural, social, and
family life.”
It also states that “the State respects
and safeguards human rights” and that
it is prohibited to abuse the elderly,
women, and children.
Protection of Rights and Interests of Women (the
Women’s Law), Art3: prohibition of “discrimination
against, maltreatment of, abandonment of, or cruel
treatment causing bodily injury or death to women”
Women’s Law, Art 35: women’s rights to life and
health should not be infringed.
General Principles of Civil Law, Art 104: protection of
marriage, family, the elderly, mothers and children
Marriage Law, Art 43: in cases of domestic violence,
34
More than 30 provinces and municipalities
throughout China have developed local
regulations against domestic violence.
At least five provinces have passed laws
prohibiting sex-selective abortions.
Marriage Law, Art9: equal rights and
responsibilities of men and women in
marriage and the family
the victim shall have the right to make a petition and
the public security organ shall stop the violence.
Marriage Law, Art 45: if domestic violence, bigamy,
or maltreatment or desertion of a family member
constitutes a criminal act, the criminal responsibility
of the actor will be investigated under criminal law.
Marriage Law, Article 46: state must take measures
to prevent and deter domestic violence.
Population and Family Planning Law: discrimination
against and mistreatment of women who give birth
to female children or who suffer from infertility are
prohibited; discrimination against, mistreatment, and
abandonment of female children are prohibited.
Fiji
Hong Kong
(Prior to the most recent coup, the
Constitution provides for equality before
the law for citizens and the prohibition
of discrimination on the basis of sex).
Domestic Violence Decree 2009
Crimes Decree of 2010: persons charged with
domestic violence offences are prosecuted for
assault-related charges under this decree.
The Working Group on Combating Violence
(WGCV) developed sets of guidelines for dealing
with sexual violence cases and battered spouse
cases.
Committee on the Promotion of Civic Education
(CPCE) of the Home Affairs Bureau, produced a
comic book for teens on gender equality and a
pictorial booklet on the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, and produced a handbook for
parents which included concepts of gender
35
equality.
The government published and distributed
materials on anti-trafficking in five languages,
namely, Chinese, English, Bahasa Indonesia,
Tagalog, and Thai with a view to raising public
awareness about trafficking.
Labour Department has continued to publish
guidelines for FDH in various languages to outline
workers’ rights, employers’ duties and the services
provided by the government.
India
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act,
2005
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention
of Atrocities) Act, 1989
Pre-conception
and
Pre-Natal
Diagnostic
Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994
Prohibition of Child Marriage, 2006
Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956
Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961
Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987
National Commission for Women Act 1990
State Commission for Women Act 2004
The Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act,
36
2005
Devadasi Prohibition Act, 1988
Indian Penal Code Act, 1860 on these forms of
violence:

Rape:

intercourse against the order of nature,

causing hurt

Dowry death

Causing miscarriage/death of child

Kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to
compel her marriage

Habitual dealing in slaves

Buying/Selling minor for purposes of prostitution

Husband or relative of husband of a woman
subjecting her to cruelty

Obscene acts and songs (used for public forms
of sexual harassment)
Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty
of a woman
Indonesia
Penal Code criminalises these forms of violence:

rape (but does not recognise marital rape)

trafficking

crimes against personal liberty

obscene acts (to use against sexual
harassment)
Law No. 23 of 2004 Regarding Elimination of
Household (Domestic) Violence (2004)
Law No. 39 of 2004 Placement and Protection of
Indonesian Workers Abroad (2004)
37
Law No. 23 of 2002 on Child Protection (2002)
Law on Anti-Trafficking (2007, passed; 2009,
implemented)
Mongolia
Mongolian Constitution, Art 11(6): equal
opportunity for all regardless of gender,
economic status, political affiliation, or
social class
Law on Protection of Child Rights
Law on Combating Domestic Violence 2004
Criminal Law 2002
Mongolian
Constitution,
Art
14:
protection
from
gender
based
discrimination
Law on Anti Human Trafficking 2011
Law on Social Welfare 2005
Labor Laws also strengthen the rights of
women by prohibiting gender
discrimination in the workplace and
increasing the maternity rights.
Law on Gender Equality 2011
Philippines
Republic Act 9710, Magna Carter of
Women (2009: recognises and protects
women’s rights at home, at work and in
all spheres of society.
Republic Act 9262: Anti-Violence Against Women
and Their Children Act (2004)
Republic Act 8353: The Anti-Rape Law (1997)
Republic Act 8505: Rape Victim Assistance and
Protection Act (1998)
Republic Act 7877: Anti Sexual Harassment Law
(1995)
Republic Act 9208: Anti Trafficking in Persons Act
(2003)
38
Republic Act 8371: Indigenous People’s Rights Act of
1997
Solomon
Islands
Islander’s Marriage Act 1978 (on
minimum age for marriage, which is 15
for girls)
Criminal law on rape (but not including marital rape)
(The government of the Solomon Islands is currently
working to reform the penal code to more clearly
define sexual offenses)
Evidence Act of 2009 (removed the corroboration
rule, which had required women to submit
corroborating evidence regarding sexual assault).
(There is no particular domestic violence legislation.
Domestic violence disputes are commonly settled by
a community leader)
Islander’s Divorce Act 1996: allows for divorce for
certain reasons including cruelty and on the basis
that spouses have been convicted for rape,
sodomy, or bestiality.
Taiwan
Gender Equality Education Act 2004
Domestic Violence Prevention and Treatment Act
1998
Regulation on Management and Use of Archives
of Sex Offenders 1998
Domestic Violence Prevention Act 2007
Regulation for the Physical and Psychological
Treatment and Counseling Education for Sex
Offenders 1998
Sexual Assault Crime Prevention Act 1997
Anti Human Trafficking Law, 2009
Regulation on the Prevention of Sexual Assault and
Sexual Harassment on Campus
39
Availability of other measures: government
programmes for the prevention of VAW
Through the survey of civil society organisations,
this project is able to gather some data on state’s
efforts in the prevention of violence against
women. The study further estimates the existence
of governmental programmes that may fulfill the
preventative aspects of due diligence. Reports
from respondents of the existence of such
governmental programmes are summarised in
Table 3 of Appendix 2.
From the responses of 53 NGOs in the Asia Pacific,
most government programmes on VAW address
mainly the issue of domestic violence.
Programmes for trafficking, abuse of girl children,
sexual harassment and child marriages are also
shown to be high on the list of priorities of the
selected governments. CSO responses indicate
that programmes for the issues of VAW in times of
war/ conflict and female genital mutilation (FGM)
are still quite few in the Asia Pacific countries. It is
also difficult to gauge from available literature the
prevalence of these forms of VAW in the countries.
Not much is being written about female genital
mutilation (FGM) in the Asia Pacific countries that
are surveyed. This may be due to the fact FGM is
closely related with acceptable and widespread
cultural practices that don’t consider the act to
be a form of violence. Many countries that
practice female circumcisions argue that minor,
non-hurtful cutting of the female genitalia (which
is claimed to be the practice) does not amount to
mutilation and the practice is done with consent
of the girls. The percentage of programmes for
disfiguring attacks may be low due to the fact
that governments may have considered this issue
to be part of the programmes on domestic
violence or crimes of causing hurt. CSO responses
also indicate that certain countries have
programmes for forms of VAW not contained in
the list such as violence against lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) members of
communities, VAW related to sexual and
reproductive rights and VAW in times of disaster.
The respondents were also asked to give their
assessments of the effectiveness of government
programmes in their countries. The assessments
from the point of view of the CSOs are important
because the organisations are often the first level
of help available for women in crises and the
CSOs often facilitate or mediate access for the
women to the governments’ facilities and
remedies. Table 11 presents respondents’ views
about the effectiveness of the preventive
programmes offered by their governments.
Table 11: The effectiveness of the preventive programmes for different types of VAW
Types of VAW
N
Female genital mutilation
5
Mean of rate of
effectiveness
3.40
Disfiguring attacks
12
3.17
Domestic Violence
44
2.66
Forced marriage
13
2.62
Child marriages
25
2.60
Trafficking
36
2.58
Abuse of girl children
37
2.46
Sexual Harassment
32
2.44
Rape and sexual Assault
34
2.44
5
2.40
VAW in times of war/conflict
40
principle. Table 12 presents the CSOs views about
their relationship with their governments.
Table 11 shows the respondents’ assessments of
the
effectiveness
of
their
governments’
programmes to eradicate VAW. For each of the
types of VAW, respondents were asked to rate the
effectiveness
of
available
government
programmes in their countries using a scale of 1
(not effective at all) to 5 (very effective). The
means of the responses are computed and
presented in Table 11. A value that is more than
2.5 (the neutral value) indicates that respondents
feel the programmes are effective and a value
below 2.5 shows vice versa.
It may be surmised that there is a degree of
interaction or communication between the civil
society and governments in Asia Pacific. This
relationship may provide checks and balances in
efforts to eradicate violence in the individual
countries and if increased may also indirectly
encourage a more formalised observation of the
due diligence principle by governments.
It should be noted that the majority of the CSOs
surveyed do not receive funding from their
governments. CSOs or NGOs often offer services
that governments have not provided or unable to
provide at a particular time. There are sometimes
overlapping in the responsibilities and areas of
activities between NGOs and governments and
governments are happy to allow this due to their
limited ability to reach or serve certain
communities
or
beneficiaries.
In
these
circumstances many governments provide
funding to their national NGOs, which otherwise
can only rely on fundraising and donations to
operate.
As the case for donour-funding,
provision of funding by governments should not
be used in any way to dictate or influence the
work of the NGOs especially to support the
positions of governments. CSOs contemporarily
work in limited-resources environments but have
(arguably) been able to continue to provide
services to local. NGOs, despite government
funding must also be able to engage with
governments openly in assessing and monitoring
governmental programmes in their areas of work.
The findings show that respondents feel that
government programmes in six of their areas of
work on VAW are effective. These are female
genital mutilation, disfiguring attacks, domestic
violence, forced marriages, child marriages and
trafficking. They feel less confident about the
effectiveness of government programmes on the
issue of abuse of girl children, sexual harassment,
rape and sexual assault and VAW in times of war/
conflict. In order to understand these perceptions
more accurately further studies need to be
conducted on the reasons for the ratings made
by the respondents.
It is pertinent to enquire into the how the
governments have engaged with their CSOs and
vice versa. This can be done by investigating the
nature of relationship and interaction between
the CSOs and their governments. Governments
that show readiness to communicate with their
civil societies may be more receptive to the idea
of consciously applying the due diligence
Table 12: Relationship between CSOs and governments
Description of relationship
Yes
F
Government reach out to/ dialogue with
civil society on VAW
Government financially support
respondent’s work on VAW
Respondent’s organization monitor/ assess
(formally or informally) Government
programmes on VAW
Yes, partially
F
%
NA
NA
42
%
79.2
1
1.9
14
32
60.4
NA
No
F
10
%
18.9
26.4
37
69.8
NA
18
34.0
NA = not applicable
41
Stakeholders and beneficiaries in
preventive programmes
There are many stakeholders and beneficiaries in
programmes aimed at eradicating VAW.
A
further way to consider whether governments’
preventative programmes are successful is to
investigate how the programmes for specific
beneficiaries or target groups exist and whether
they have benefitted the various stakeholders
and beneficiaries. The survey conducted in this
project identified beneficiaries or target groups/
entities of the preventative programmes and
asked respondents whether programmes related
to these target groups exist in their countries and if
so, to rate the effectiveness of the programmes in
relation to the target groups. Respondents’
reports as to whether programmes for specific
target groups exist in their countries is contained in
Table 3 of Appendix 2.
Police, women and medical service providers are
reported to be the most common beneficiaries of
government programmes on VAW in the Asia
Pacific. This is logical since these three groups can
be directly linked to the issue of VAW in whatever
form. Women should rightly be the direct
beneficiaries of preventative programmes. All
forms of VAW are, in essence, criminal acts and
their prevention requires the intervention of the
police. Police must have deep knowledge and
understanding of the various forms of VAW in
order to effectively intervene in the cases. VAW
will result in physical and other forms of injuries.
The medical service providers, as the police, are
often the first points of contact for victims of VAW
in seeking help. Programmes that target at
increasing the awareness of medical service
providers about the issue of VAW will help them
deal more effectively with the cases. It is of
concern that the respondents are more
ambivalent in their responses about knowledge of
42
the existence of government programmes that
target men and boys. This ambivalence indicates
that the programmes, if existing more that
reported, are not very visible. Men are the
majority perpetrators of VAW and preventative
measures that involve men and boys are crucial
in creating change.
Other
than
reporting
the
existence
of
programmes
for
different
target
groups,
respondents are also asked to rate the
effectiveness of these programmes. Table 9 shows
respondents report of how effective they think the
programmes in their countries for specific target
groups have been.
Table 13 shows respondents’ rating of the
effectiveness of programmes for different target
groups. The highest value for effectiveness is 5
and the lowest is 1. Although the most effective
preventive programmes claimed by respondents
from Asia Pacific region are for the young children
(ages 5-10) group, it only has the mean of 3.00 for
its effectiveness which is over-average but cannot
be said to be highly effective. The least effective
preventive programme is for the police group,
which has 2.53 mean of reported effectiveness.
To be effective government measures on VAW
must address VAW in a comprehensive context.
This includes having protections for different
groups and sub-groups of survivors of VAW. While
women are generally vulnerable to gender-based
violence, women of certain categories or
experiences are particularly at risk in specific
circumstances. This includes poor or rural women,
women with disabilities, migrant women and so
on.
The survey undertaken for this project
investigates respondents’ views of whether
government measures have made specific
provisions to address the needs of these
intersections of women (see Table 4 and 5,
Appendix 2).
Table 13: The effectiveness of the preventive programmes for the different target groups
Target Group
Young children (ages 5-10)
Youths and teenagers (ages 11-25)
Women
Medical service providers
Teachers
Community, religious or traditional leaders
Men and boys
Minority/vulnerable group
Police
Based on the findings, less that 50% of
respondents can be sure that specific provisions
exist in government programmes that address the
issue of specific categories of women or women
with specific experiences. Many governments
address the issue of poverty amongst women in
relation to VAW. Some attention is given to
women with disabilities and migrant women.
Women with minority sexual orientation may have
been less addressed in the issue of violence due
to socio-cultural context that does not accept the
normative non-heterosexual orientation. In such
cases, women who experience violence in
homosexual relationship may feel at risk of social,
and in some cases criminal, sanctions if they
come forward to seek help about intimate
partner violence.
Bangladesh, Indonesia, China and Taiwan
reported having provisions about all of the
specified categories of women in their
governments’
measures
with
Taiwan
demonstrating the highest existence of such
programmes (based on the percentage of
respondents who have reported the existence of
such programmes). Provisions on rural women
appear to exist in all of the countries survey
except Hong Kong and Solomon Islands. For
Hong Kong, this may be explained by the
generally urban geographical development of
the country. Much information needs to be
gathered further about Solomon Islands since the
report show no particular provisions on the
specified categories of women.
Addressing risk factors for VAW
The existence of government interventions in VAW
cases is crucial in ensuring that VAW is reduced.
N
Mean
12
3.00
20
2.95
33
2.91
28
2.89
16
2.81
15
2.80
14
2.64
14
2.64
43
2.53
Interventions come in various forms that include
and are not limited to the provision of sociostructural support such as education, employment
and housing; addressing the issue of poverty and
how it impacts on the stability of the family; the
enactment of laws that not only address specific
forms of VAW but also other social inequities that
may surrounds the issue of VAW and the
implementation of programmes that promote
gender equality in the family and eliminate
cultural views and norms that influence and
perpetuate violence.
Respondents in the survey for this project were
asked about government interventions they feel
are influential in increasing the incidents of VAW in
their countries. Table 14 represents respondents’
views about whether specified factors increase
the prevalence of VAW, based on their
organisational experiences.
Table 14 shows the mean of respondents’
responses as to whether they agree that the
specified factors increase the incidents of VAW.
In the rating for agreement, 1 represents a total
disagreement and 5 represent and absolute
agreement that the relevant factors increase
VAW. Respondents show that they have high
agreement in relation to all of the factors that are
seen as increasing the risk of VAW. Socio-cultural
norms and practices are seen as very important
factors that have bearings on incidents of VAW.
Gender inequality in society is considered as the
most influential factor in perpetuating VAW. Lack
of economic power of women is a socio-cultural
factor
because
the
women’s
economic
empowerment is often determined by society’s
views of whether women should be given access
to economic rights or activities.
43
Table 14: Respondents’ rating of factors that increase the risk of VAW
Factors that increase the risk of VAW
Gender inequality
A woman's lack of economic independence
Negative cultural or religious perception of woman
Financial instability for family
A woman's low level of schooling and education
Inadequate housing for family
Respondents are also asked to share their
knowledge of whether the factors specified are
being addressed by their respective governments
(see Table 7, Appendix 2). Table 21 presents their
responses.
In the majority of the countries
surveyed, all
factors specified are being
44
Agree that factors increase the risk of
VAW
N
Mean
53
4.66
53
4.45
53
4.36
53
4.11
53
4.04
52
3.83
addressed to a certain extent by governments.
However, when considered further, in most
countries less than 60% of respondents agree that
the factors are being addressed. Taiwan and the
Philippines report the highest agreement with
whether the factors are being addressed.
CHAPTER III
2. PROTECTION
One of the most important roles of governments in
intervening in VAW issues is to provide protection
to the survivors from further harm when cases of
VAW are identified and known. This includes
keeping the survivors safe, ensuring that there is
no opportunity for the perpetrators to instigate
further violence and making sure the victims/
survivors receive adequate and timely services.
This report will further discussed these aspects of
due diligence by referring to available literature
and the survey conducted for this project.
Protection through the provision of
services: the issue of accessibility
Based on the survey conducted for this project,
counselling and support centres are indicated as
the most available services for survivors of VAW
(see Table 7, Appendix 2). The respondents
particularly report the dearth of services relating
to the empowerment of women. Making
available services that help VAW survivors is just
one step in helping them and in eradicating VAW.
The services must further be accessible to women
experiencing violence from various perspectives
such as cost, physical location where relevant
and information and processes that can be
understood by the women.
The survey in this project tries to gauge from the
respondents the accessibility based on these
elements, of government services that are
established to intervene in VAW cases and to help
the victims. Respondents are asked to rate the
accessibility of the services in reference to cost,
proximity to public transport, the availability of the
services in rural or remote areas and the
availability of the services in language/s that can
be understood by the people at which the
services are targeted.
Table 9 in Appendix 2 presents the responses in
relation to the issue of cost. According to the
respondents, the cheapest services available to
victims of VAW are telephone help lines and
counselling (including interventions at support
centres). Although medical and health facilities
are crucial services for survivors of VAW, the
respondents do not think these have been too
affordable. Less than half of the respondents feel
these are accessible in terms of cost). In addition,
even when one-stop centres are considered by
many to be a feature of best practices in VAW
intervention, respondents do not feel that these
have been cheap for victims to access. This may
be because of the location of the one-stop
centres. If the services are mostly available in
cities or towns, to access it survivors from rural or
remote areas will have to incur high costs.
Rehabilitation service centres are reported to be
the least economical of the government services
available. Further investigation needs to be done
on the nature of the rehabilitation centres in
different countries in the Asia Pacific to
understand the cost implication to their users.
Table 10, Appendix 2, presents respondents view
about the availability of their governments’
programmes in relation to their accessibility by
public transport. In terms of physical accessibility
of government services, respondents feel that
one-stop centres top the list. Available
government crèches and legal services are also
seen as services that are offered in locations that
can easily be reached by public transport by
survivors of VAW who wish to use the services. It
should be noted, however, that even where the
services are location-wise accessible, it does not
mean that they are free or are not costly, as can
be seen from the earlier discussion on cost.
Immediate and safe housing, rehabilitation
service centres and services related to
empowering women remain less accessible to
women in terms of location.
Table 11, Appendix 2 presents respondents views
about the accessibility of government services in
terms of their reach to rural areas. Respondents
generally feel that all the specified government
services are not very accessible to rural or remote
areas. In each of the services mentioned, less
than 40% of the respondents feel that it is
accessible to people in the rural or remote areas.
Medical and health facilities and counselling and
45
support centres are reported to be most
accessible to rural users. One-stop centres are
ranked very low from the aspect of their
availability to rural people. This is a concern since
to access the services rural people will have to
travel to town and cities and this will further
increase the cost they will incur in order to use the
services.
Table 12 in Appendix 2 is a representation of
respondents’ views about the availability of
government services in terms of local languages/
dialect. The accessibility of government services in
terms of its availability in local languages or
dialects is seen by the respondents to be
generally high. Legal and counselling services are
widely available in local languages and this is very
beneficial to survivors of VAW. However, the
respondents report that telephone help lines
services are the least available in the local
languages. This is a concern because telephone
help lines are the cheapest means of getting help
for survivors of violence and if aid cannot be
prescribed due to language barriers, the benefits
for the survivors may be greatly reduced. Further
inquiries need to be made as to why these
services are seen as limited in terms of their
available in local languages. One possible reason
is that where a country’s population uses multiple
native languages, the services may mostly be
available in the official language/s that may not
be readily understood by victims with the native
languages/ dialects.
When government services that deal with VAW
issues are, on the surface, available to women
who are affected by violence, there may be
certain factors that limit the access of the services.
On the other hand, certain factors may instead
add value to the effectiveness and availability of
certain services. Table 13 of Appendix 2 lists
respondents’ views about factors that may render
services in their countries more accessible or less
accessible to women survivors of violence. Most
of the reported factors that are seen as reducing
the accessibility of government services as
mentioned by the respondents are actually
factors that reinforce their reports on the
inaccessibility of the services in terms of the
comprehensiveness of coverage of the services.
Respondents also reported that the services were
highly inaccessible to remote geographical areas
of their respective countries. Governments need
to make more systematic assessment of the reach
46
of their services based on geographical areas
and the reasons for inability to achieve wider
reach. Budgeting plans needs to specifically
allocate resources for the setting up of services to
remote areas.
Another important factor that is reported as
reducing the accessibility of government services
to survivors of VAW is the persistent lack of
understanding or negative attitudes of service
providers towards the issues of and surrounding
VAW.
This fundamentally refers to insensitive
responses of service providers when dealing with
survivors of VAW, especially where particular
service providers are the first points of contact for
survivors seeking help. The beliefs that domestic
violence is a private matter or that survivors’
behaviour contribute towards why they are raped,
for example, may influence the way in which
officials react and respond to reports of violence.
This is an issue that must be comprehensively
tackled by governments. Approaches may range
from giving on-the-job training to designing
programmes that will fundamentally challenge
persistent patriarchal social norms and practices.
Availability of criminal justice, judicial,
medical and social services
Police is frequently the first point of contact that
survivors of VAW made with in order to seek help.
Their ability to respond urgently to the contact
and in a specific manner, greatly reduce the risk
of further harm to survivors of VAW. The
subsequent responses of the criminal justice
system to survivors’ reporting are also significant in
ensuring that survivors are given effective and just
disposal of cases. In addition, parallel services
such as medical treatment and social support
intervention are also essential in providing
protection for victims of VAW.
The survey in this project attempts to assess
whether the legal, judicial, medical and social
services are immediately available for victims.
Table 14 of Appendix 2 shows respondents’ rating
of police services in terms of giving immediate
responses. Only slightly more than half of
respondents feel that police would readily offer
the service to accompany a survivor to retrieve
her belongings. This intervention is highly essential
in domestic violence cases where women flee
their matrimonial homes to seek help from further
violence. In most cases, the women brought
minimal belongings with them and it is important
that they are able to safely go back to the
matrimonial
homes
to
gather
important
belongings
before
seeking
alternative
accommodation.
Slightly more than half of the respondents think
that police in their countries have legal powers to
require perpetrators of violence to leave premises
in order to ensure the safety of the victims. These
powers are ordinarily granted in legislation
dealing with VAW, particularly on domestic
violence. Although these powers are reported by
the majority of respondents to be immediately
available, there is still a high number of
respondents (41.5%) who considers this power to
be absent.
Respondents are less confident of the ability of
the police in their countries to respond to
information or report of VAW in an urgent manner.
Only 28.3% of the respondents feel that the police
have done this. Low response time to VAW reports
have implications on the safety of victims of VAW
and in certain circumstances will have serious
impact on subsequent processes of cases. Police
quick response, for example, timely presence at
the scene of violence, may diffuse life-threatening
situations. Late response, on the other hand, may
sometimes cause inadequate gathering of
evidence, which have implications on the
prosecution of VAW cases.
A logical consequence of police intervention in
VAW cases is the prosecution of the perpetrators
especially in countries where forms of VAW are
considered
criminal
offences.
Effective
prosecution and related processes are important
in further ensuring the safety of survivors of VAW.
Table 15 of Appendix 2 contains respondents’
assessment of the immediate availability of
important elements in prosecution.
For the
purpose of the survey, two elements in
prosecution are included in the questionnaire
administered to respondents. Coordination
between prosecutors and other agencies while
prosecution is pending and during prosecution
proceedings is an important service that will
greatly benefit the survivors of VAW. The other
element of prosecution is the time taken for the
disposal of protection orders to victims, either as
interim measures pre-prosecution or more
permanent protection orders to be applied upon
the commencing of prosecution or as part of
prosecution outcome.
Based on the survey, the majority of the
respondents report that important elements in
prosecution of VAW cases that will help survivors
of VAW are not present in their countries. Few
respondents report that coordination between
prosecutors and other agencies are immediately
available in their countries. Survivors may need
medical and psychological treatments after
reporting of incidents of violence. They and
accompanying children may need shelter or
alternative accommodation. Child victims may
need special attention from child protection
services and agencies dealing with children as
witnesses. Lack of urgent coordination between
prosecutors and other relevant agencies may not
only cause further adversity to the survivors but
may also affect the prosecution. Survivors may
not able to cooperate effectively in their own
cases because of limitations resulting from needs
and concerns that are not immediately
addressed.
The respondents in this study also indicate the
unavailability of quick turnaround time in applying
for protection orders. Prosecution decisions
sometimes take time because they depend, inter
alia, on investigations of cases by the police. It is
important that protection orders are available
pending the prosecution decisions. If protection
orders are dependent upon the commencing of
prosecution, it is also critical that prosecution
decisions be made promptly and assistance with
applying for protection orders be made available
urgently to survivors.
The role of the courts in disposing of cases is very
important to ensure effective protection for
victims of VAW. Other than specific powers given
through legislation, courts must be able to
exercise discretionary powers based on just
considerations. Important elements in the courts
that will lead to effectual resolutions in VAW cases
include the ability to grant protection orders
without delay and to make relevant orders in
conjunction with or separate from the protection
orders. These include orders giving exclusive
occupation of matrimonial homes to victims of
domestic violence or orders to exclude
perpetrators from the premise where victims are
ordinarily residing, other varieties of restraining or
47
expulsion orders, orders related to children and
orders requiring perpetrators to undergo
intervention programmes. Table 16, Appendix 2
presents the promptness of judicial responses to
VAW cases, based on the reports of the
respondents.
Based on the survey, the majority of respondents
have reported that there is immediate availability
in the first three elements of the judicial response
to VAW as listed in Table 16, Appendix 2. However,
it is of concern that the respondents do not think
that the two last elements in the list, which are
very important aspects of judicial responses to
VAW, are effectively accessible to survivors of
VAW. The immediate availability of protection
orders to victims is highly essential to ensure their
safety from further violence. Many victims of VAW
are severely economically disadvantage at the
point of seeking help.
Judicial interventions in
the form of orders for the exclusive use of marital
or family assets such as houses, car and
government welfare benefits acquired as spouses
or a family, facilitate victims leaving violent
relationships.
Physical and psychological hurt are direct
outcomes of VAW. Infliction of pain on the body
and through psychological means is a way,
which perpetrators of violence use to assert
power over the victims/ survivors. At the point of
seeking help, many victims have evidence of
48
physical
injuries
but
may
not
display
psychological impact of the violence. Effective
protection against VAW must ensure that both
types of hurt be dealt with when survivors first
make contact with the relevant agencies. An
indicator of the effectiveness of protection
measure for VAW is the immediate availability of
medical and psychological interventions for VAW
survivors/ victims.
Other than needing medical and psychological
attention, survivors of VAW are also in vulnerable
positions in relation to many socio-economic
issues.
They may be in need of shelter or
alternative accommodation and other protective
services, both for themselves and particularly in
the case of domestic violence, for their children or
children under their care. Child victims of VAW
further require more targeted social services
intervention.
This study surveys respondents’
assessment of the accessibility of these medical
and social protective measures in their countries
(see Table 17, Appendix 2). Unfortunately, most
respondents reported the unavailability of
medical services and services related to
emotional and psychological interventions in their
countries. Where available, medical intervention
for physical injuries is more obtainable than
assistance in the form of emotional or
psychological therapies.
Social services are
reported
to
be
more
available.
CHAPTER III
3. PROSECUTION AND INVESTIGATION
A very important indicator of the government’s
due diligence in the case of VAW is the action
taken by it to investigate and prosecute acts of
violence perpetrated against women.
A
consistent
practice
of
investigation
and
prosecution will reassure victims of VAW to take
steps to stop the violence or to leave the violent
location without fear of repercussion.
Factors
affecting
victims/
decisions to seek help
survivors’
Literature has indicated various factors, which
hinder or cause victims to hesitate from reporting
experiences of violence or from leaving the
locations or situations of violence. Women NGOs
have also noted down many of these factors in
their annual reports as causing women to defer
seeking help. This study assesses whether these
factors are communicated by victims of VAW to
the respondent-NGOs and whether the factors
actually
hamper
victims
from
seeking
interventions.
Based on the responses of the NGOs, survivors of
VAW in the Asia Pacific have complained of all of
the specified factors in the list.
Table 18,
Appendix 2 shows the types of complaints
received by respondents from the victim/survivor
in relation to factors that hinder the latter from
seeking help. More than half of the respondents
reported having received complaints about all of
the factors mentioned except for “fear of
deportation”.
Three-quarter (75%) of the
respondents
reported
that
victims
have
complained about two-thirds of the factors listed
in Table 18 of Appendix 2. It is not surprising that
the most frequent complaint received is fear of
repercussions from perpetrators if victims report
VAW, which is reported by 94.3% of the
respondents. In most cases, service providers are
able to predict such occurrence and as such,
they should take all necessary steps to provide
appropriate protection to survivors upon receiving
reports from them.
The possible detrimental effects on their
economic wellbeing as a consequence of
seeking help for violence is also a factor that is
very often communicated and complained
about by survivors of VAW. In domestic violence
cases, for example, many survivors depend
economically on their perpetrators. If they leave
the relationship or the matrimonial homes, they
may experience financial difficulties.
Sexual
harassment victims will also face economic
hardship in cases where their reporting causes
them to lose jobs.
Three factors with the highest deterrent effects to
victim seeking help, according to the respondents,
are (see also, Table 19, Appendix 2):
1.
2.
3.
Victims’ lack of confidence in the
judiciary
Victim’s lack of confidence in the police,
and
Social stigma or socio-cultural taboo
associated with their experiences of
violence.
The first two are directly related to services
provided by the government and lack of
confidence in these services implies the lack (of
efficacies in the services. Social stigma and
taboo can be less directly attributable to state
responsibilities. However, prevalent socio-cultural
norms are often reflected in attitudes and
approaches that government adopted in
addressing particular issues. Such attitudes and
approaches influence to the processes of
enacting policies and law and of their
implementation thereof.
Governments must
therefore, take action to reduce and eventually
eliminate such standards and mores of society
since it has adverse impact on the rights of
citizens to freedom from violence.
49
Prosecutorial decisions and VAW
The police, prosecution and judiciary are key
state institutions in ensuring justice for victims of
VAW. Police officers are ordinarily the first on-thescene personnel of government agencies for
reported incidents of VAW. They are also
responsible to conduct expedient investigation to
ensure successful prosecution of perpetrators.
Prosecutors and the prosecution offices play a
large role in determining the outcome of formal
intervention in VAW cases. Decisions to prosecute
and the way prosecution is handled will have
impact on victims’ confidence in the criminal
justice system.
Prosecutors’ sensitivity to the
nature of relationship of victims to the
perpetrators in many VAW cases is crucial making
sure that victims are able to contribute in the
success of the prosecution. This is not only
important for prosecutorial record purposes but
also to give a sense of empowerment to victims/
survivors. The judiciary has final, determinative
power in criminal justice processes. In the case of
VAW, judicial policy, norms and practices can
influence the sense of justice survivors obtain from
the processes.
Much of the success of
prosecution in VAW cases hinges upon the
cooperation of the victims/ survivors. However,
where victims are uncooperative or are not able
to contribute in their own cases, simply dropping
the cases is not desirable practice from a duediligence perspective. The survey in this project
gauges
respondents’
views
about
the
appropriate actions that governments must take
in cases where victims are unable or refuse to
continue with prosecution of their cases.
In the survey, an assessment of the respondents’
opinions about governments’ responses in cases
where victims/ survivors refuse or are unable to
proceed with the prosecution of their cases is also
made (see Table 20, Appendix 2).
The
respondents are generally in favour of steps that
will ensure prosecution but that is also concerned
with the welfare of the survivors. They strongly
disagree with measures that further victimise the
survivors such as denying the victims protection or
prosecuting the victims for lack of cooperation.
50
Attitudes and perceptions of justice
agencies affecting legal proceedings in
VAW cases
Attitudes, perception and sentiments of justice
agency personnel often permeate into their
decisions in dealing with VAW cases.
Their
personal views about marital relationship, for
example, may lead to decisions in their
intervention that are premised heavily on
upholding the family institution even in the face of
potential harm to individual members of the
family. In the case of the court, perception of the
privacy of family issues, may influence judges to
compulsorily require cases to be disposed
informally or through alternative dispute resolution
methods, which may not address VAW issues
effectively. Lack of understanding about the
psychosocial aspects of VAW and about the
gendered nature of VAW may lead the justice
personnel to conclude that women are partially, if
not wholly, to blame for violence they suffer or
continue to suffer.
The survey in this project gauges the presence of
such attitudes and sentiments amongst the justice
agencies’ officials as observed
by the
respondents (see Table 21, Appendix 2). The
respondents are asked to assess whether the listed
negative attitudes and sentiments about VAW are
present amongst justice personnel in their
countries. The respondents feel that detrimental
attitudes about VAW are quite pervasive amongst
the personnel in all three justice agencies,
particularly the police.
The respondents also
reported
that
these
agencies
frequently
demonstrate views of the primacy of protecting
the institution of the family. This attitude may lead
to the decisions, inter alia, to settle cases through
alternative means than formal, legal processes.
This include encouraging the victims to go
through a process of mediation or conciliation
with the perpetrators either as semi-formal or nonformal processes endorsed by the courts. It
should be noted that preference for “talking it out
with the perpetrators” is also a prevalent
sentiment observed by respondents in the
agencies. In many cases, these processes are
conducted with a view to reconcile the parties
and this premise can be harmful to women and
girl-children in VAW cases. It is good to note that
blaming-the-victim attitude is reported to be low
amongst the police but its continued presence is
still worrying. This attitude, however, appears to
be significantly present in the judiciary.
Plural legal system and its impact on
prosecution and investigation
Legal structures and systems may hinder or
facilitate processes of justice for VAW cases.
Many countries in the Asia Pacific have sources of
law that are multiple and based on the different
religions and cultures of the peoples of the
countries. Where these sources are formalised
(through constitutional or legislative provisions),
women who experience gender-based violence
may be compulsorily differentiated in the access
to justice. In countries that purport to have a
singular system but have diverse socio-cultural
demographics, governments may informally allow
certain orderings, especially in relation to the issue
of marriage and the family, to be conducted at
community levels.
Amongst the countries surveyed Bangladesh,
India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Solomon
Islands have formal plural legal systems. In all of
these countries, other than a general system of
law based, in most cases, on legal systems of their
historical colonial masters, religious and customary
laws are allowed to subsist to address mainly
‘personal’ matters of peoples of different religious
and ethnic backgrounds. Although not a majority,
a substantial number (45.7%)85 of respondents in
the countries that have plural legal systems feel
that the religious or customary laws condone
VAW to a certain extent by providing justifications
for acts of violence against women. They are also
of the opinion that acts of VAW are typically
harder to proof in religious or customary legal
processes.
Missing value is at 20% of sample (i.e 20% of
respondents in the sample group did not record their
answers) and the percentage is based on respondents
who answered positively only.
85
51
CHAPTER III
4. PUNISHMENT
In assessing due diligence of governments on the
issue of VAW, matters that need to be taken into
account include methods that are used by
governments to hold perpetrators of VAW to
account. These methods come in the form of,
inter alia, legislation that specify or prescribe
forms of punishment for VAW.
Many countries in the Asia Pacific have general
criminal legislation under which acts of VAW are
considered for prosecution. Punishment under
such prosecution will be based on the offence/s
under which complaints of VAW is categorised.
Several countries also enact legislation for
specific forms of VAW with detailed forms of
punishment. Respondents in the survey are asked
to list and describe usual forms of punishment in
their countries when perpetrators of VAW are
prosecuted under the law (see Table 22,
Appendix 2). Incarceration appears to be the
most common form of punishment for all forms of
VAW in the Asia Pacific. Life imprisonment and
death penalty are also used in a few of the
countries especially for the crime of rape. This
shows some seriousness on the part of the
legislature in dealing with specific forms of VAW.
However, there is more unclear availability of
punishment for types of violence in the context of
marriage such as domestic violence, forced
marriage and child marriage. Countries in the
Asia Pacific show disapproval of domestic
violence by legislating against it in various forms.
However, in many countries, it is shown that there
is a tendency to “down-criminalise” the offence
when enforcement agencies prefer to intervene
informally. Police, for example, have been shown
to prefer not deal with the perpetrators by
entering them into the formal system of criminal
justice (e.g. at the very basic, by preparing
investigation papers and applying order to
investigate) even when the act committed is
parallel to that of an act that would ordinarily be
dealt with accordingly if committed by strangers.
Based on Table 22 of Appendix 2, are generally
dissatisfied with the adequacy of punishment
provided for VAW in their countries. Only on the
issue of rape the respondents have agreed that
52
punishments
in
their
countries
generally
commensurate with the crime. In many of the
Asia Pacific countries, laws on rape have been in
existence for relatively long period of time
compared to laws on other forms of VAW. In India,
for example, the Penal Code was first enacted in
1860 and contained provisions on rape (sections
375-376). Thus, the laws may have gone through
many legislative amendments that improve their
effectiveness and this may explain respondents’
agreement that the punishments they generally
commensurate with the crime of rape.
When probed further, respondents show much
lower agreement with the adequacy of
punishments for VAW provided by their States, in
the context of the purposes of punishments (see
Table 23, Appendix 2).
They consider the
punishments to be especially inadequate in
rehabilitating the perpetrators of violence.
The effectiveness of punishment or sentencing
provisions in VAW cases may be modified by
certain defences presented to the judges. These
defences may be based on norms and practices
in particular countries or certain conditions or
environment in these countries. In the case of the
norms and practices, these may be formally
legislated as providing legal exceptions to
punishment or sentencing or judges may be
indirectly influenced by social sanctions or
conditions in particular issues when sentencing.
Respondents in the survey for this project feel that
defence of provocation may significantly
influence sentencing by judges in their countries
(see Table 24, Appendix 2). The defence of
honour is seen as less influential but CSO
responses
indicate
that
there
are
still
circumstances where judges have considered this
defence in deciding on sentences.
Another important aspect of punishment is that it
should rehabilitate the perpetrator and prevent
him from repeating his violent behaviour. Thus,
legal provisions on VAW should contain forms of
punishment, as alternatives or additions, which
have these purposes. Based on the survey, less
than 50% of the respondents feel that current
punishments or sentencing patterns can
contribute towards the rehabilitation or improved
behaviour of the perpetrators and thus, help
reduce recidivism (see Table 25, Appendix 2).
CHAPTER III
5. PROVISION OF REDRESS AND REPARATION
In the context of this project, redress refers to any
form of compensation or reparation that is made
available to survivors of VAW, in addressing the
harm or loss suffered by the survivors. Women
experiencing VAW not only suffer from physical
injuries, but also emotional and psychological hurt.
In cases where survivors of VAW have children,
their children may suffer similar grievances and
the survivors may incur additional costs in seeking
help.
In many domestic violence cases,
perpetrators cause damages to victims’ property
to cause emotional hurt to or to demonstrate their
powers over the survivors. It should be the
responsibility of the State/ government to provide
redress for these forms of harm.
In the survey, respondents are asked whether their
governments
provide
compensation
and
reparation for various harms experienced by the
survivors of VAW (see Table 24, Appendix 2).
Based on the respondents’ report, redress is mostly
available for suffering in the forms of physical
harm, costs incurred related to children and
medical costs. The redress for these items may
mostly be in the form of provisions of medical
services at government hospitals and welfare
assistance from social services.
Loss of
opportunities (e.g. work, education), moral harm
(e.g. loss of reputation) and psychological/
mental hurt receive the least redress from the
government. Based on the NGO responses, the
highest available redress in the Asia Pacific
countries is court action for civil remedies, which
allows survivors to claim compensation and
damages for hurt caused and/or for cost incurred
in seeking intervention. Criminal actions also, in
certain circumstances, yield reparation for victims
(through
specific
behavioural
orders
to
perpetrators). In a few countries, victim
compensation schemes are set up to provide
assistance to the survivors while criminal cases
against their perpetrators are ongoing.
While redress may be available, the process of
getting the redress may be less accessible for the
survivors. One way to assess the accessibility of
the redress is by looking at who has to bear the
cost of the process to get redress. If redress is
available but survivors have to incur cost before
obtaining reparation, this may hinder survivors
from accessing the process in the first instance.
Having to incur partial cost may also be limiting
for certain survivors especially those from a very
disadvantaged economic background. Free
processes and processes that can be accessed
through full-financial aid (if survivors fulfil set
criteria) such as legal aid may be considered to
be accessible by survivors. The project inquires
into the accessibility of the processes for redress
from the respondents and the responses are
contained in Table 26 of Appendix 2.
The responses show that the costs of processes to
obtain redress are still largely borne by survivors
who seek the redress. The lowest costs of process
of redress for survivors can be obtained for redress
provided at community level (both legally
sanctioned or non-legally sanctioned community
or religious councils or tribunals). All formal/legal
(provided directly by the State) forms of redress
are obtainable through processes that require
incurrence of costs on the survivors’ part. This may
limit their ability to get redress and may
discourage them to seek help. This survey finds
that only 24.5% of the respondents believe that
their governments have allocation to pay
compensation to survivors of violence 86 . States
should take steps to increase the accessibility of
the redress by bearing the full costs or a
substantial portion of the costs. Schemes where
funds are contributed by different stakeholders
but which will be made available without any
cost to needy survivors should be more prevalent.
Based on responses to question F.4(a) of the
questionnaire. 43.4 percent of respondents reported
that their governments do not have allocation for such
compensation and 24.5 percent are not sure if there is
such allocation from their respective governments.
86
53
The respondents generally feel that monetary
compensation is the best form of redress for all
types of losses/ harm suffered by survivors of VAW
and especially in the case where property has
been damaged in the course of violent behaviour
(see Table 28, Appendix 2). For causing physical
and mental harm, the punishment of perpetrators
is also seen as a very important redress. Apology is
seen to be most suitable for VAW that causes
survivors loss of reputation (moral harm).
Interestingly, perpetrator’s promise to cease
causing harm is mostly seen as important for
physical harm and less so for mental harm. The
use of restitution as a form of redress is mostly felt
to be important for loss of opportunities and
54
material damage. However, restitution has
possible merits in helping survivors recover many
aspects of their lives (for example, regain safe
family life and respected social standing, recover
economic losses etc) and acquire new benefits
for their wellbeing (freedom from violence or
controlling environment, gaining employment or
education etc). Respondents feel that restitution
in their countries does not have high effectiveness
in restoring property and place or residence,
liberty, employment, economic opportunities,
reintegration into communal and family lives,
citizenship and social standing of survivors of VAW
(See Table 29, Appendix 2).
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION – BEST PRACTICES ON VAW
Many of the Asia Pacific countries have in place
various measures to combat violence against
women. Legislation prohibiting particular forms of
violence is especially available for domestic
violence, rape, sexual assault and trafficking.
There are also multiple approaches to intervention
and prevention of these problems such as
provision of counseling, campaign programmes,
awareness-raising
through
community
and
religious organisations and programmes to
empower women to improve their situation and
to be knowledgeable of their rights. There are less
clear formal, legal or other measures for issues of
sexual harassment, marital rape, forced marriage
and child marriage. A few of the available
measures are fairly useful and can be established
as best practices to be emulated by other
countries, perhaps with some modifications,
where needed, to cater to socio-cultural
differences. Table 30 of Appendix 2 presents
respondents’ report of government measures
available to deal with VAW, that they are aware
of. It also contains their suggestions for best
practices in tackling the issue of VAW in their
respective countries. A few of the suggestions
refer to measure already existing in their countries.
Best practices proposed by respondents generally
focus on practical solutions to VAW problems. In
many cases, the proposed best practices are key
programmes that underlie and will enhance the
effectiveness of legislative measures. They are
measures that promotes looking at VAW
resolutions from holistic perspectives and that are
targeting and involving multiple stakeholders. A
few of these best practices relate to existing
programmes and respondents express the desire
to see them being implemented more seriously
and cohesively. Best practices in a few of these
countries can also be easily emulated in the other
Asia Pacific countries.
The recommended best/ good practices based
on existing and proposed measures may be
summarised as follows:
1.
Clear legislation that addresses VAW
comprehensively. Legislation may be for
specific forms of VAW or a general
legislation on VAW that takes into
account all forms of VAW occurring the
country and with detailed provisions on
intervention
2. Multi-sectoral programmes on violence
against women
3. Regular awareness-raising and training
programmes for government officers,
with
extensive
follow-up.
These
programmes must cater to the issue of
staff turnover in particular departments/
agencies dealing with VAW
4. Proactive programmes that promote
attitudinal change and cultural reforms
5. Legal aid and free legal assistance to
victims
6. Possible use of alternative dispute
resolution methods
7. Special courts for VAW cases. This is to
also to facilitate survivors’ inclusion
substantially and critically in the whole
process of prosecution and investigation
to increase their sense of empowerment
and to make it easier for court order
implementation programmes to be
formulated
8. Gender-sensitive personnel in justice
proceedings (including police, lawyers,
prosecutors, judges).
A temporary
measure to ensure sensitive intervention
in
VAW
cases
is
by
assigning
policewomen to units that deal with VAW.
Sensitisation may also be achieved by
developing comprehensive prosecution
guidelines with detailed protocols in
handling VAW cases
9. Victim-focused
rehabilitation
programmes
10. Fair trial and due process.
55
APPENDIX 1
SOCIO-POLITICAL-LEGAL CONTEXT OF THE ASIA PACIFIC
COUNTRIES
Table 1: Social, legal and political context of the South Asian region
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
Population:
1.5 billion
Women: 49.4%
Ethnic: Bengali
(98%) and other
ethnic (2%)
Religions:
Muslim (89.5%);
Bangladesh Hindu (9.6%);
other (0.9%)
Parliamentary democracy with a
unicameral legislature.
Head of state: President
678 Dhaka
Bhutan
Women:
47.7%
(60% of
Bhutanese
refugees in Nepal
are women and
56
Bengali
Plural; English-based common law form
the main system; parallel personal laws
(for Muslims and minority Christians,
Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs)
Age at first
marriage for
women: (no
recent data): In
2000, more than
50% of women
were married by
the age of 15
Population:
717,000
(1/6 of Bhutan
population live
in as refugees
in Nepal after
being evicted
by the
government for
being labeled
economic
migrants)
Head of government: Prime Minister
2,121 Thimphu
Constitutional monarchy
Dzongkha
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
children)
Ethnic make-up:
Bhote 50%,
ethnic
Nepalese 35%,
indigenous or
migrant tribes
15%
Religions:
Lamaistic
Buddhism 75%,
Hinduism 25%
Age at first
marriage for
women:
Population:
1.21 billion
Population of
women: 48.4%
India
Ethnic: IndoAryan (72%),
Dravidian (25%),
and Mongoloid
and other (3%).
“Sovereign socialist secular democratic
republic”, with a parliamentary system.
1,389 New Delhi
Religions: More
than 80% of
population are
Hindu. Other
religions are
Muslim (13.4%),
Christian (2.3%),
Sikh (1.9%), and
other (1.8%).
English-based common law system;
constitutional supremacy
Population:
396,000
Presidential Republic (President as Head
of Government and Head of State).
Legislative body is called the People’s
Majlis and is unicameral.
Women: 48.5%
Maldives
Religion: Islam is
the official
religion and open
practice of any
other religion is
forbidden and
liable to
prosecution.
A federal Union of 28 states and 7 Union
Territories, specified in the Constitution.
Bengali,
Gujarti, Hindi,
Kannad,
Oriya,
Marathi,
Malayalam,
Telugu,
Tamil,English
5,973 Malé
Constitution states: "The judges are
Dhivehi
independent, and subject only to the
constitution and the law. When deciding
matters on which the Constitution or the
law is silent, judges must consider Islamic
Shari’ah.”
Ethnic: Dhivehis
57
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
(but more than
70,000 foreign
employees,
along with 33,000
illegal immigrants
(from
neighbouring
South Asian
countries)
comprised more
than one third of
the Maldivian
population.
Population:
26.6 million
Women: 50.4%
Ethnic:
The Nepalese are
descendants of
three major
migrations from
India, Tibet, and
North Burma and
the Chinese
province
of Yunnan.
Nepal
850 Kathmandu
Democratic multi-party system federal
republic
Nepali
Islamic Republic
Urdu, English
Religion:
Hinduism
Population:
180.4 million
Women: 49.2%
Ethnic:
Punjabi, Pashtun,
Sindhi
Pakistan
1,201 Islamabad
Religion: Islam
(97%)
Sri Lanka
20.3 million
2,877
Sri JayawardeDemocratic Socialist Republic
napura-Kotte
Source: (Various World Wide Web resources)
58
Sinhala, Tamil
Table 2: Social, legal and political context of the South Asian region
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
Population:
425,890
Women: 49.5%
Ethnic: Malay,
Chinese, Indians
Brunei
Darussalam

Religions:
Islam (67%),
Buddhism (13%),
Christianity (10%),
others
(indigenous
beliefs, etc.)
(10%)
678
Bandar Sri
Begawan
The politics of Brunei take place in a
framework of an absolute monarchy,
whereby the Sultan of Brunei is both
head of state and head of government.
Executive power is exercised by the
government. Brunei has a Legislative
Council with 20 appointed members,
that only has consultative tasks.
Malay
Legal system: mixed legal system based
on English common law and Islamic law
Age at first
marriage for
women: 25.1
Population:
14,952,665
Women: 51.7%
Ethnic: Khmer
90%, Vietnamese
5%, Chinese 1%,
other 4%
Cambodia
931 Phnom Penh
Religions:
Buddhist (official)
96.4%, Muslim
2.1%, other 1.3%,
unspecified 0.2%
The politics of Cambodia takes place in
a framework of a constitutional
monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is
the head of government and a Monarch
is head of state. The kingdom formally
takes place according to the nation's
constitution (enacted in 1993) in a
framework of a parliamentary,
representative democracy. Executive
power is exercised by the government.
Legislative power is vested in the two
chambers of parliament, the National
Assembly and the Senate.
Khmer
(official) 95%,
French,
English
Legal system: civil law system (influenced
by the UN Transitional Authority in
Cambodia) customary law, Communist
legal theory, and common law
Age at first
marriage for
women: 22.8
Population:
248,216,193
Indonesia
Women: 49.9%
Ethnic: Javanese
40.6%,
Sundanese 15%,
Madurese 3.3%,
Jakarta
Politics of Indonesia takes place in a
framework of a presidential
representative democratic republic,
whereby the President of Indonesia is
both head of state and head of
government, and of a multi-party system.
Executive power is exercised by the
government. Legislative power is vested
in both the government and the two
People's Representative Councils. The
Bahasa
Indonesia
(official,
modified form
of Malay),
English,
Dutch, local
dialects (of
which the
most widely
59
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Minangkabau
2.7%, Betawi
2.4%, Bugis 2.4%,
Banten 2%,
Banjar 1.7%, other
or unspecified
29.9%
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
judiciary is independent of the executive spoken is
and the legislature. The 1945 constitution Javanese)
provided for a limited separation of
executive, legislative, and judicial power.
The governmental system has been
described as "presidential with
parliamentary characteristics."[1]
Following the Indonesian riots of May
1998 and the resignation of President
Suharto, several political reforms were set
in motion via amendments to the
Constitution of Indonesia, which resulted
in changes to all branches of
government.
Religions: Muslim
86.1%, Protestant
5.7%, Roman
Catholic 3%,
Hindu 1.8%, other
or unspecified
3.4%
Legal system: civil law system based on
the Roman-Dutch model and influenced
by customary law
Age at first
marriage for
women: 24.6
Population:
6,586,266
Women: 50.4%
Ethnic: Lao 55%
Khmou 11%
Hmong 8%
other (over 100
minor ethnic
groups) 26%
Lao’s People
Religions:
Democratic
Buddhist 67%,
Republic
Christian 1.5%,
other and
unspecified
31.5%
Laos is a communist single-party socialist
republic.
1,203 Vientiane
Lao
Legal system: civil law system similar in
form to the French system
Age at first
marriage for
women: 21.6
Population:
28,334,135
Women: 49.2%
Ethnic: Malay
50.4%, Chinese
23.7%, indigenous
11%, Indian 7.1%,
others 7.8%
Religions: Muslim
(or Islam - official)
60.4%, Buddhist
Malaysia
60
The politics of Malaysia takes place in
the framework of a federal
representative democratic constitutional
monarchy, in which the Yang di-Pertuan
Agong is head of state and the Prime
Minister of Malaysia is the head of
Bahasa
9,699 KUALA LUMPUR government. Executive power is
Malaysia
exercised by the federal government
and the 13 state governments.
Legal system: mixed legal system of
English common law, Islamic law, and
customary law; judicial review of
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
19.2%, Christian
9.1%, Hindu 6.3%,
Confucianism,
Taoism, other
traditional
Chinese religions
2.6%, other or
unknown 1.5%,
none 0.8%
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
legislative acts in the Supreme Court at
request of supreme head of the
federation
Age at first
marriage for
women: 25.7
Population:
54,584,650
Women: 50.3%
Myanmar
Ethnic: Burman
68%
Shan 9%
Karen 7%
Rakhine 4%
Chinese 3%
Indian 2%
Mon 2%
other 5%
Religions:
Buddhist 89%,
Christian 4%
(Baptist 3%,
Roman Catholic
1%), Muslim 4%,
animist 1%, other
2%
The current government of Burma is led
by Prime Minister (and General) Thein
Sein.
854 Naypyidaw
Legal system: mixed legal system of
English common law (as introduced in
codifications designed for colonial India)
and customary law
Burmese
Age at first
marriage for
women: 26.4
Population:
103,775,002
Philippines
Women: 49.9%
Ethnic: 28.1%
Tagalog, 13.1%
Cebuano, 9%
Ilocano, 7.6%
Bisaya/Binisaya,
7.5% Hiligaynon,
6% Bikol, 3.4%
Waray, and
2,462 Manila
The Politics of the Philippines takes place
in an organized framework of a
presidential, representative, and
democratic republic whereby the
president is both the head of state and
Filipino,
the head of government within a
English
pluriform multi-party system.
Legal system: mixed legal system of civil,
common, Islamic, and customary law
61
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
25.3% as "others"
Religions:
Catholic 82.9%
(Roman Catholic
80.9%, Aglipayan
2%), Muslim 5%,
Evangelical 2.8%,
Iglesia ni Kristo
2.3%, other
Christian 4.5%,
other 1.8%,
unspecified 0.6%,
none 0.1%
Age at first
marriage for
women: 19.3
Population:
5,353,494
Women: 51.3%
Singapore
Ethnic: Chinese
76.8%, Malay
13.9%, Indian
7.9%, other 1.4%
Religions:
Buddhist 42.5%,
Muslim 14.9%,
Taoist 8.5%, Hindu
4%, Catholic
4.8%, other
Christian 9.8%,
other 0.7%, none
14.8%
50,323 Singapore
Age at first
marriage for
women: 28.5
Women: 50.5%
Ethnic: Thai and
Thai Chinese
5,394 Bangkok
The politics of Thailand are currently
conducted within the framework of a
constitutional monarchy, whereby the
Prime Minister is the head of government
and a hereditary monarch is head of
state. The judiciary is independent of the Thai
executive and the legislative branches.
(89%)
• Northeastern
Thai (Isan Lao)
62
Mandarin
(official) 35%,
English
(official) 23%,
Malay
(official)
14.1%,
Hokkien
11.4%,
Cantonese
5.7%,
Teochew
4.9%, Tamil
(official) 3.2%,
Legal system: English common law
Population:
67,091,089
Thailand
The politics of Singapore takes the form
of a parliamentary representative
democratic republic whereby the
President of Singapore is the head of
state, the Prime Minister of Singapore is
the head of government, and of a multiparty system. Executive power is
exercised by the cabinet. Cabinet has
the general direction and control of the
Government and is collectively
responsible to Parliament. Like many
countries in the world today, there are
three separate branches of government:
the legislature, executive and judiciary,
though not necessarily meaning that
there is a separation of power.
Legal system: civil law system with
common law influences
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
(34.2%)
• Central Thai
(33.7%)
• Northern Thai
(18.8%)
• Southern Thai
(13.3%)
• Thai Chinese
(14%)
Khmer (7%)
Malay (3%)
Other (1%)
Religions:
Buddhist (official)
94.6%, Muslim
4.6%, Christian
0.7%, other 0.1%
Age at first
marriage for
women: 24
Population:
91,519,289
Women: 50%
Ethnic: Kinh (Viet)
85.7%, Tay 1.9%,
Thai 1.8%, Muong
1.5%, Khmer 1.5%,
Mong 1.2%, Nung
1.1%, others 5.3%
Viet Nam
Religions:
Buddhist 9.3%,
Catholic 6.7%,
Hoa Hao 1.5%,
Cao Dai 1.1%,
Protestant 0.5%,
Muslim 0.1%,
none 80.8%
Age at first
marriage for
women: 22.8
1,498 Hanoi
The politics of the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam are defined by a single-party
socialist republic framework, where the
President of Vietnam is the head of state
and the Prime Minister of Vietnam is the
head of government, in a one-party
system led by the Communist Party of
Vietnam. Executive power is exercised
by the government and the President of
Vietnam. Legislative power is vested in
the National Assembly of Vietnam
(Vietnamese: Quoc hoi). The Judiciary is Vietnamese
independent of the executive. The
parliament adopted the current
Constitution of Vietnam, its fourth, on 15
April 1992, and it has been amended
once since then.
Legal system: civil law system; note - the
civil code of 2005 reflects a Europeanstyle civil law
63
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
Source: (Various World Wide Web resources)
Table 3: Social, legal and political context of the East Asian region
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political:
The Constitution of the People’s
Republic of China divides the central
government into three distinct
branches of power: the executive,
legislative and the judiciary. The
central government exerts its power
across numerous provincial and
municipal governments and townships.
At present, China also maintains five
autonomous regions. In rural China,
village governments organized by
villagers themselves govern local affairs
almost entirely independently from the
central government for the most part.
Population:
1,343,239,923
Women: 48.1%
Ethnic: Han
Chinese 91.5%,
Zhuang, Manchu,
Hui, Miao, Uighur,
Tujia, Yi, Mongol,
Tibetan, Buyi,
Dong, Yao,
Korean, and
other nationalities
8.5% (2000
census)
China,
$8,400
(2011)
Beijing
Religions: Daoist
(Taoist), Buddhist,
Christian 3%-4%,
Muslim 1%-2%
64
Legal System:
China operates a civil law legal system
based on a civil code and it has sought
to extensively modernize its laws over
the course of the last forty years or so
by sending its jurists and judges around
the world to draw on different traditions
and learn from them. Therefore, the
Chinese legal system is influenced by
various jurisdictions but most notably,
the European civil law system.
Official
languages
Standard
Chinese or
Mandarin
(Putonghua,
based on the
Beijing dialect),
Yue
(Cantonese),
Wu
(Shanghainese),
Minbei (Fuzhou),
Minnan
(HokkienTaiwanese),
Xiang, Gan,
Hakka dialects
The Supreme People’s Court, whose
judges are appointed by the National
People’s Congress (NPC) and some
Special Courts constitute the judicial
branch. Provincially, local people’s
congresses are elected democratically
and there are local people’s courts
and special courts. Local people’s
courts are comprised of basic,
intermediate, and high courts.
Age at first
marriage for
women: 22
Population:
Democratic 24,589,122 (July
People’s
2012)
Republic of
Korea
Women: 12.2
million
Political and legal systems
$1,800
Pyongyang
(2011)
Civil law system based on the Prussian
model; system influenced by Japanese Korean
traditions and Communist legal theory
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
Ethnic: racially
homogeneous;
there is a small
Chinese
community and
a few ethnic
Japanese
Religions:
traditionally
Buddhist and
Confucianist,
some Christian
and syncretic
Chondogyo
(Religion of the
Heavenly Way)
Age at first
marriage for
women: 24.
Population:
7,153,519 (July
2012
Women: 52.7%
Ethnic: Chinese
95%, Filipino 1.6%,
Indonesian 1.3%,
other 2.1%
Hong Kong
No capital
49,400
Religions:
eclectic mixture
of local religions
90%, Christian
10%
Age at first
marriage for
women: 28.8.
Hong Kong’s constitution, the Basic
Law was promulgated in 1990 and
came into effect on 30 June 1997.
Hong Kong practices a form of limited
democracy with three branches of
government: executive, judicial, and
legislative. The executive branch
comprises of a Chief Executive, who is
elected by a 1200-member Election
Committee, and an Executive Council,
whose members are appointed by the
Chief Executive. The legislative branch
consists of the Legislative Council,
whose members are elected by direct
election, functional constituents and by
an election committee. There are 18
District Councils, whose members are
both elected by direct election and
appointed.
The judiciary is composed of the Court
of Final Appeal, the High Court (which
includes the Court of Appeal and the
Court of First Instance), the District
Courts, the Magistrates’ Court, the
Lands Tribunal, the Labour Tribunal, the
Small Claims Tribunal, the Obscene
Articles Tribunal, and the Coroner’s
Court. The courts have jurisdiction
over all the cases in the region, and the
judges have life tenure and are
appointed by the Chief Executive
pursuant to recommendations made
Cantonese
(official) 90.8%,
English (official)
2.8%,
Putonghua
(Mandarin)
0.9%, other
Chinese dialects
4.4%, other 1.1%
65
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
by a Judicial Officers
Recommendation Commission. The
appointments to senior levels in the
judiciary must be endorsed by the
legislature.
Mixed legal system of common law
based on the English model and
Chinese customary law (in matters of
family and land tenure).
Population:
127,368,088 (July
2012)
Women: 51.3%
Ethnic: Japanese
98.5%, Koreans
0.5%, Chinese
0.4%, other 0.6%
Japan,
34,700 Tokyo
Civil law system based on German
model; system also reflects AngloAmerican influence and Japanese
traditions; judicial review of legislative
acts in the Supreme Court.
Japanese
$4,800 Ulaanbaatar
Mongolia is a parliamentary
democracy with a Constitution and
three branches of government:
executive, judicial, and legislative.
There is both a chief of state and a
head of government. The country is
divided into 21 administrative
provinces. There are Soviet and
Romano-Germanic influences in the
legal system.
Khalkha Mongol
90% (official),
Turkic, Russian
Religions:
Shintoism 83.9%,
Buddhism 71.4%,
Christianity 2%,
other 7.8%
Age at first
marriage for
women: 28.8.
Population:
3,179,997 (July
2012)
Women: 50.6%
Mongolia,
Ethnic: Mongol
(mostly Khalkha)
94.9%, Turkic
(mostly Kazakh)
5%, other
(including
Chinese and
Russian) 0.1%
(2000)
Religions:
Buddhist Lamaist
50%, Shamanist
and Christian 6%,
Muslim 4%, none
40% (2004)
Age at first
marriage for
66
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011)
($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
women: 24.2.
Population:
48,860,500 (July
2012)
Women: 50.9 %
Ethnic:
homogeneous
(except for about
20,000 Chinese)
Republic of
Korea,
Religions:
Christian 31.6%
(Protestant 24%,
Roman Catholic
7.6%), Buddhist
24.2%, other or
unknown 0.9%,
none 43.3% (2010
survey)
31,200 Seoul
Mixed legal system combining
European civil law, Anglo-American
law, and Chinese classical thought
Korean and
English
Age at first
marriage for
women: 28.9 with
parental consent.
Population:
23,234,936 (July
2012)
Women: 49.2%
(2006)
Taiwan
Ethnic: Taiwanese
(including Hakka)
84%, mainland
Chinese 14%,
indigenous 2%
Religions: mixture
of Buddhist and
Taoist 93%,
Christian 4.5%,
other 2.5%
37,700 Taipei
Democracy with a constitution that
divides government into executive,
legislative and judicial branches. (The
People’s Republic of China considerst
Taiwan part of its territory and does not
recognise Taiwan as a separate state).
Legal system is based on civil law
system.
Mandarin
Chinese
(official),
Taiwanese
(Min), Hakka
dialects
Age at first
marriage for
women: 20 as
the age of
majority
67
Table 4: Social, legal and political context of the Pacific Islands
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011) ($)
Capital
Population: 106,487
Women: 50.2%
Federated
States
of
Micronesia
Ethnic: Chuukese 48.8%, Pohnpeian
24.2%, Kosraean 6.2%, Yapese 5.2%,
Yap outer islands 4.5%, Asian 1.8%,
Polynesian 1.5%, other 6.4%,
unknown 1.4%
2664 Palikir
Religions: Roman Catholic 52.7%,
Protestant 41.7% (Congregational
40.1%, Baptist 0.9%, Seventh-Day
Adventist 0.7%), other 3.8%, none or
unspecified 0.8%
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
Federal parliamentary
representative democratic
republic. The President of the
Federated States of Micronesia is
both head of state and head of
government. Executive power is
exercised by the government,
while legislative power is vested
in both the government and
English
parliament. The judiciary is
independent of the executive
and the legislature.
The country has a mixed legal
system of common and
customary law
Age at first marriage for women:
24.2
Population: 890,057
Women: 49.1%
Ethnic: Fijian 57.3% (predominantly
Melanesian with a Polynesian
admixture), Indian 37.6%, Rotuman
1.2%, other 3.9% (European, other
Pacific Islanders, Chinese)
Fiji
Religions: Protestant 55.4%
(Methodist 34.6%, Assembly of God
5.7%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.9%,
Anglican 0.8%, other 10.4%), Hindu
27.9%, Roman Catholic 9.1%, Muslim
6.3%, Sikh 0.3%, other or unspecified
0.3%, none 0.7%
3965 Suva
Parliamentary representative
democratic republic. Fiji has a
multiparty system with the prime
minister of Fiji as head of
government. The executive
power is exercised by the
government. Legislative power is
vested in both the government
and the Parliament of Fiji.
English (official),
Fijian (official),
The legal system of Fiji is a
common law system based on
the English model
Age at first marriage for women:
22.8
Population: 101,998
Women: 51.9%
Ethnic: Micronesian 98.8%, other
1.2%
Kiribati
1592
Religions: Roman Catholic 55%,
Protestant 36%, Mormon 3.1%,
Baha'i 2.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist
1.9%, other 1.8%
Age at first marriage for women:
68
South
Tarawa
Parliamentary representative
democratic republic, whereby
the President of Kiribati is the
head of government, and of a
multi-party system. Executive
power is exercised by the
government. Legislative power is
vested in both the government
and the House of Assembly.
I-Kiribati, English
(official)
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011) ($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
21.6
Population: 68,480
Women: 49.2%
Ethnic: Marshallese 92.1%, mixed
Marshallese 5.9%, other 2%
Marshall
Islands
Religions:
Protestant 54.8%, Assembly of God
25.8%, Roman Catholic 8.4%, Bukot
nan Jesus 2.8%, Mormon 2.1%, other
Christian 3.6%, other 1%, none 1.5%
(1999 census)
2,500 (2008) Majuro
Mixed legal systems of US and
English common law, customary
law, and local statutes
Marshallese
(official)
Age at first marriage for women:
20.2 (2007)
Population: 9,378 (July 2012)
Women: 50%
Ethnic: Nauruan 58%, other Pacific
Islander 26%, Chinese 8%, European
8%
Nauru
Religions:
Protestant 45.8% (Nauru
Congregational 35.4%,
Nauru Independent Church 10.4%),
Roman Catholic 33.2%, other 14.1%,
none 4.5%,
unspecified 2.4% (2002 census)
No official
capital;
Mixed legal system of common
governme
5,000 (2005)
law based on the English model
nt offices
and customary law
in Yaren
District
Nauruan
(official, a
distinct Pacific
Island
language)
Age at first marriage for women:
(information not available but a
reference show that 27% of women
aged between 20-24 were married
by age 1887).
Population: 6,310,129 (July 2012)
Women: 49.0%
Ethnic: Melanesian, Papuan,
Negrito, Micronesian, Polynesian
Papua New
Guinea
Religions:
Roman Catholic 27%, Protestant
69.4%
(Evangelical Lutheran 19.5%, United
Church 11.5%, Seventh-Day
Adventist 10%, Pentecostal 8.6%,
Evangelical Alliance 5.2%, Anglican
87
2,500 (2011)
Port
Moresby
Tok Pisin
(official), English
(official), Hiri
Motu (official),
some 860
indigenous
languages
Mixed legal system of English
common law and customary law spoken (over
12% of the
world's total);
most languages
have fewer
than 1,000
speakers
See, http://www.spc.int/prism/country/nr/stats/Publication/DHS/Factsheet/NauruDHS_0_Key%20indicators.pdf
69
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011) ($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
3.2%, Baptist 2.5%, other Protestant
8.9%), Baha'i 0.3%, indigenous
beliefs and other 3.3% (2000 census)
Age at first marriage for women:
21.8 (2004)
Population: 194,320 (July 2012)
Women: 48.4%
Ethnic: Samoan 92.6%, Euronesians
(persons of European and
Polynesian blood) 7%, Europeans
0.4% (2001 census)
Samoa
Religions: Protestant 59.9%
(Congregationalist 34.8%, Methodist
15%, Assembly of God 6.6%,
Seventh-Day Adventist 3.5%),
Roman Catholic 19.6%, Mormon
12.7%, Worship Centre 1.3%, other
Christian 4.5%, other 1.9%,
unspecified 0.1% (2001 census)
$6,000 (2011) Apia
Mixed legal system of English
common law and customary law; Samoan
judicial review of legislative acts (Polynesian)
with respect to fundamental
(official), English
rights of the citizen
Age at first marriage for women:
24.3 (2002)
Population: 584,578 (July 2012)
Women: 48.3%
Ethnic: Melanesian 94.5%,
Polynesian 3%, Micronesian 1.2%,
other 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (1999
census)
Solomon
Islands
Religions:
Protestant 73.7% (Church of
Melanesia 32.8%, South Seas
Evangelical 17%, Seventh-Day
Adventist 11.2%, United Church
10.3%, Christian Fellowship Church
2.4%), Roman Catholic 19%, other
Christian 4.4%, other 2.4%,
unspecified 0.3%, none 0.2% (1999
census
$3,200 (2011) Honiara
Melanesian
pidgin (lingua
franca in much
of the country),
English (official
but spoken by
Mixed legal system of English
common law and customary law only 1%-2% of
the population),
120 indigenous
languages
Age at first marriage for women:
23.3 (2009)
Population: 106,146 (July 2012)
Women: 49.9%
Tonga
Ethnic: Polynesian, Europeans
Religions: Christian (Free Wesleyan
Church claims over 30,000
70
$7,300 (2011) Nuku'alofa English common law
Tongan
(official), English
(official)
Country
Demographics
GDP per
capita
(2011) ($)
Capital
Political and legal systems
Official
languages
adherents
Age at first marriage for women:
26.0 (2001, median value)
Population: 10,619 (July 2012)
Women: 50.1%
Ethnic:
Polynesian 96%, Micronesian 4%
Tuvalu
Religions: Protestant 98.4% (Church
of Tuvalu (Congregationalist) 97%,
Seventh-Day Adventist 1.4%), Baha'i
1%, other 0.6%
$3,300 (2011) Funafuti
Mixed legal system of English
common law and local
customary law
Tuvaluan
(official), English
(official),
Samoan, Kiribati
(on the island of
Nui)
Age at first marriage for women:
26.1 (2010, median value)
Source: (Various World Wide Web resources)
71
APPENDIX 2
TABLES
Table 1: The existences of programmes of prevention by governments for specified types of VAW (n=53)
Type of VAW
Domestic Violence
Trafficking
Abuse of girl children
Rape and sexual Assault
Sexual Harassment
Child marriages
Forced marriage
Disfiguring attacks
VAW in times of war/conflict
Female genital mutilation
72
Exist
Frequency
45
38
37
35
33
27
16
14
7
5
%
84.9
71.7
69.8
66.0
62.3
50.9
30.2
26.4
13.2
9.4
Does not exist
Frequency
%
5
9.4
7
13.2
10
18.9
13
24.5
13
24.5
21
39.6
25
47.2
28
52.8
25
47.2
33
62.3
Not sure
Frequency
%
2
3.8
6
11.3
4
7.5
5
9.4
4
7.5
1
1.9
6
11.3
8
15.1
15
28.3
7
13.2
Table 2: Respondents’ views of effectiveness of the government’s programmes by country
Neither effective nor
ineffective
Ineffective
Bangladesh
Types of VAW
% of responses
Domestic Violence
Sexual Harassment
Rape and sexual
Assault
Abuse of girl children
VAW in times of
war/conflict
Trafficking
Female genital
mutilation
Disfiguring attacks
Child marriages
Forced marriages
25
50
75
Effective
China
100
25
50
100.0
75
Fiji
100
25
50
Hong Kong
75
100
25
50
75
India
100
25
50
75
Indonesia
100
25
50
73
75
100
Mongolia
Types of VAW
25
%
Domestic Violence
Sexual Harassment
Rape and sexual
Assault
Abuse of girl children
VAW in times of
war/conflict
Trafficking
Female genital
mutilation
Disfiguring attacks
Child marriages
Forced marriages
74
50
75
Philippines
100
25
50
75
Solomon Islands
100
25
50
75
Taiwan
10
0
25
50
75
100
Table 3: The existence of preventative government programmes for targeted groups
Target groups/entities
Exist
Frequency
43
37
30
22
18
16
Police
Women
Medical service providers
Youths and teenagers (ages 11-25)
Teachers
Community, religious or traditional
leaders
Men and boys
Minority/vulnerable group
Young children (ages 5-10)
Not exist
Frequency
%
3
5.7
10
19.6
12
22.6
19
35.8
19
35.8
19
35.8
%
81.1
69.8
56.6
41.5
34.0
30.2
16
16
13
30.2
30.2
24.5
21
22
23
Not sure
Frequency
%
7
13.2
3
5.9
10
18.9
9
17.0
13
24.5
14
26.4
39.6
41.5
43.4
14
9
14
26.4
17.0
26.4
Table 4: The existences of the specific provisions in existing measures that address different categories and
experiences of women
Target groups/entities
Exist
Frequency
26
19
17
14
Woman from rural areas (n=51)
Women with disabilities (n=50)
Migrant women (n=50)
Women with psychological difficulties
(n=51)
Women refugees and displaced
women (n=51)
Women with minority sexual
orientation (n=50)
Women with chronic disease (n=51)
%
49.1
35.8
32.1
26.4
Not exist
Frequency
%
21
39.6
24
45.3
24
45.3
27
50.9
Not sure
Frequency
%
4
7.5
7
13.2
9
17.0
10
18.9
12
22.6
29
54.7
10
18.9
10
18.9
35
66.0
5
13.2
9
17.0
27
50.9
15
28.3
Table 5: The existence of the specific provisions that address different categories and experiences of women, by
country
√ = exist
Migrant women
Bangladesh
China
Fiji
n=7
(F)
n=5
(F)
n=1
(F)
√ (4)
√ (2)
(0)
Hong
Kong
n=4
(F)
India
√ (2)
(0)
n=12
(F)
Indonesia Mongolia Philippines
n=7
(F)
√ (2)
n=5
(F)
(0)
Solomon
Islands
n=1
(F)
Taiwan
√ (4)
(0)
√ (3)
√ (2)
(0)
√ (1)
n=8
(F)
n=3
(F)
Women
refugees and
displaced
women
√ (3)
√ (2)
(0)
(0)
√ (2)
√ (2)
(0)
Woman from
rural areas
√ (5)
√ (3)
√ (1)
(0)
√ (6)
√ (3)
√ (1)
√ (4)
(0)
√ (3)
Women with
psychological
difficulties
√ (3)
√ (1)
(0)
(0)
√ (2)
√ (2)
√ (1)
√ (2)
(0)
√ (3)
Women with
chronic disease
√ (2)
√ (1)
(0)
(0)
(0)
√ (2)
√ (1)
(0)
(0)
√ (3)
Women with
disabilities
√ (4)
√ (4)
(0)
(0)
√ (3)
√ (2)
√ (1)
√ (2)
(0)
√ (3)
Women with
75
minority sexual
orientation
% of categories
with existing
relevant
provisions (n=7)
√ (2)
√ (1)
(0)
√ (1)
X (0)
√ (2)
(0)
√ (1)
(0)
100.0
100.0
14.3
28.6
57.1
100.0
57.1
85.7
0.0
√ (3)
100.0
Table 6: Respondents views of whether risk factors for VAW are being addressed
India
n=12
(%)
Gender inequality
Philippines Bangladesh Indonesia China Mongolia Taiwan
n=8
(%)
n=7
(%)
n=7
(%)
n=5
(%)
n=5
(%)
n=3
(%)
Hong
Kong
n=4
(%)
Fiji
n=1
(%)
Solomon
Islands
n=1
(%)
58.3
100.0
71.4
28.9
60.0
60.0
100.0
25.0
100.0
A woman's lack of
economic
independence
75.0
62.5
71.4
57.1
80.0
20.0
66.6
25.0
0.0
A woman's low level
of schooling and
education
75.0
87.5
71.4
42.9
60.0
20.0
100.0
0.0
0.0
50.0
75.0
42.9
42.9
40.0
0.0
100.0
50.0
0.0
0.0
25.0
50.0
57.1
42.9
60.0
00.0
100.0
25.0
0.0
0.0
33.3
37.5
42.9
42.9
40.0
20.0
66.6
25.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
83.3
100.0
83.3
33.3
52.8
68.9
59.5
42.9
56.7
20.0
88.9
25.0
33.3
Financial instability
for family
Negative cultural or
religious perception
of woman
Inadequate housing
for family
% of factors being
addressed (n=6)
% of the extent to
which factors are
being addressed
based on
respondents’ report
(n=600)
76
100.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
16.6
16.7
Table 7: The availability of the government services to women victims/survivors of VAW
Type of services
Counselling and support centre
Legal advice or legal referrals
Medical and health
Telephone help lines
Immediate, safe housing
Creches or child care
Rehabilitation services centre
One stop centre
Empowerment
Available
Not available
Not sure
frequency percentage frequency percentage frequency percentage
41
77.4
7
13.2
2
3.8
39
73.5
8
15.1
4
7.5
41
77.4
9
17.0
2
3.8
39
73.5
10
18.9
1
1.9
36
67.9
12
22.6
2
3.2
30
56.6
12
22.6
7
13.2
27
52.9
15
29.4
6
11.8
27
50.9
21
39.6
4
7.5
15
28.3
22
41.5
10
18.9
Table 8: The accessibility of the government services in terms of cost
Type of services
Accessible
Frequency
Not accessible
%
Frequency
Not sure
%
Frequency
%
Telephone help lines (n=38)
25
65.8
10
26.3
3
7.9
Counselling and support centre
26
65.0
9
22.5
5
12.5
Creches or child care (n=29)
17
58.6
6
20.7
6
20.7
Medical and health (n=36)
21
58.3
9
25.0
6
16.7
Immediate, safe housing (n=34)
16
47.1
10
29.4
7
20.6
Legal advice or legal referrals
17
43.6
16
41.0
5
12.8
12
46.2
6
23.1
8
30.8
Empowerment (n=14)
6
42.9
5
35.7
3
21.4
Rehabilitation services centre
9
36.0
10
40.0
6
24.0
(n=40)
(n=39)
One stop centre (n=26)
(n=25)
Table 9: The accessibility of the government services in term of public transportation
Type of services
One stop centre
Crèches or child care (n=28)
Legal advice or legal referrals
Medical and health (n=34)
Counselling and support centre
Immediate, safe housing
Rehabilitation services centre
(n=24)
Empowerment (n=13)
Accessible
Frequency
%
17
68.0
17
60.7
20
51.3
21
61.8
20
54.1
15
44.1
11
45.8
5
33.3
Not accessible
Frequency
%
6
23.1
4
14.3
10
25.6
11
32.4
9
22.5
9
26.5
8
33.3
5
Not sure
Frequency
%
2
7.7
7
25.0
4
10.3
2
5.9
8
20.0
7
20.6
5
20.8
33.3
3
20.0
Table 10: The accessibility of the government services in term of availability in rural areas
Type of services
Medical and health (n=34)
Counselling and support centre
Telephone help lines (n=32)
Empowerment (n=13)
Accessible
Frequency
%
16
47.1
15
40.5
14
43.8
5
33.3
Not accessible
Frequency
%
15
44.1
18
45.0
14
43.8
6
40.0
Not sure
Frequency
%
3
8.8
4
10.0
4
12.5
2
13.3
77
Creches or child care
Immediate, safe housing
Legal advice or legal referrals
One stop centre
Rehabilitation services centre
7
8
9
6
4
24.1
23.5
23.1
23.1
14.8
10
17
20
17
15
34.5
50.0
51.3
65.4
55.6
9
5
6
3
3
31.0
14.7
15.4
11.5
11.1
Table 11: The accessibility of the government services in term of local languages/dialects
Type of services
Legal advice or legal referrals
Counselling and support centre
Creches or child care
Empowerment (n=12)
Medical and health (n=34)
Rehabilitation services centre
(n=23)
Immediate, safe housing
One stop centre
Telephone help lines (n=31)
Accessible
Not accessible
Not sure
Frequency percentage frequency percentage frequency percentage
28
71.8
3
7.7
5
12.8
29
76.3
5
12.5
4
10.0
20
69.0
1
3.4
4
13.8
10
83.3
0
0.0
2
16.7
27
79.4
3
8.8
4
11.8
16
69.6
2
8.7
5
21.7
18
15
18
52.9
60.0
58.1
3
6
3
8.8
24.0
9.7
9
4
10
26.5
16.0
32.3
Table 12: Factors rendering services to be more or less accessible to survivors of VAW, by country
COUNTRY
Bangladesh
FACTORS RENDERING SERVICES LESS ACCESSIBLE
FACTORS RENDERING SERVICES MORE
ACCESSIBLE
Many programmes are temporary project-based
program and may not create long-lasting
impact/change
The population generally understands
Bengali (language of most services),
therefore, services are accessible in terms
of language
Lack of infrastructure in remote areas (particularly
‘char’ or island areas or remoter hilly regions)
means services may not be accessible to these
areas.
Lack of publicity about programmes
Society’s persisting prejudice or lack of empathy
towards victims
Fiji
Legal service providers are not gender sensitised
Insufficient legal service providers
Hong Kong
Lack of sensitivity of frontline workers towards cases
of same-sex domestic violence
Help lines are not LGBT-friendly
Lack of promotion of the help lines within the local
LGBT community
The only shelter house that caters for gay men and
pre-op trans women is always full. Some victims
cannot enter though in crisis situation.
78
India
Corruption
Family control over freedom of survivors
Survivors’ fear of loss of social status within kinship
and caste (if seeking intervention)
Lack of sensitisation towards women and VAW
issues
No awareness campaign or advertisements
in local media or in common places to
publicise the availability of shelter homes.
Certain rules and reputation of shelters
(e.g. male children above eight are separated
from the mothers and shelters are seen as
places for fallen women) may hinder women’s
willingness to take up the services.
(In Gujarat three shelter homes
have been shut down due to low rate of
occupancy, that may be attributable to these
factors)
Shelter units are more like custodial institutions and
in located within unsafe environments. Rape victims
have been reportedly kept in jails for safety as there
are no appropriate/safe shelters.
The remoteness of some areas in the country
causes the government services to be inaccessible
to victims living there
Lack of check and balances and accountability for
the services
Delay in court processes cause victims to incur high
cost without certainty of justice
Criteria for eligibility to legal aid not clear to victims.
Quality of legal aid and public prosecutors is a
concern
Lack of human resources for implementation of
various legislation and programmes
Lack of funds to implement measures
General insensitivity amongst government agencies
towards issue of VAW
Counselling services are very expensive and few.
There is very little understanding of mental health
problems in relation to VAW.
79
Indonesia
Lack of human resources for the integrated service
centres
Information about services are still not very
widespread
Services are still not accessible to survivors in rural
areas and government has not allocated sufficient
budget to establish the services in these areas.
There are some positive cases of
coordination between NGO and the
governments.
There are positive evidence of the
application and implementation of Law
No.23 of 2004 on the Elimination of
Domestic Violence at different levels of
governments (especially provincial and
local and in some cases, district).
The “socialisation” or promotion of this law
also encourages survivors to come
forward and report their cases.
There is an encouraging development of
community members championing the
issues of VAW within their communities.
Mongolia
Lack of awareness amongst government agencies
about the existence of VAW problem.
Most of the services are town-centric and women
from rural areas are hardly aware of the services
available in the districts.
Survivors’ fear of repercussions if seeking state
intervention
Survivors’ fear of stigma in society if seeking help in
the open.
Government’s lack of attention to women’s rights
issues
Philippines
Lack of widespread provision of VAW information
and services
Availability of services according to areas. Services
not available in remote areas.
Multi-media exposure of services
Such services are not in government’s priority.
Attitude and perception of society about women
and women’s issues contribute to the lack of
understanding about VAW. VAW is still seen as
private matter. The constant exclusion of women’s
varied experiences, and the society’s continued
failure to recognize the serious and multi-faceted
nature of violence against women, promotes a
culture of impunity, undermining and rendering
invisible the experiences of women and impeding
their access to these services.
Quality of interpersonal communication of service
providers may impact access to women.
The current responses to violence against women
being confined to elements of the crime and to
80
Increased internet technology may make
information more accessible.
laws of procedure and evidence and refusing to
delve into the realm of women’s real concern vis-àvis the political, economic, and cultural aspects of
access to justice.
Solomon
Islands
Services are few and far between and are not
accessible to the majority of people who live in
rural areas in Solomon Islands
Transport and communication is a problem
Taiwan
Rural areas may not get services compare to the
cities.
Some women have lost trust in the government and
may not access the services
The attitude of some judicial officers that
emphasises on reconciliation (even putting it as a
condition in giving protection orders) prevents
women’s unconditional access to services.
Table 13: The immediate availability of the intervention by the police in response to allegations of VAW
Interventions
Police can accompany victim/
survivor to retrieve belongings
Police have authority to expel or
remove perpetrator from
premises
Quick response time
Available
Frequency
%
32
60.4
Not available
Frequency
%
12
22.6
Not sure
Frequency
%
8
15.1
27
50.9
22
41.5
3
5.7
15
28.3
33
64.7
3
5.7
Table 14: The immediate availability of the intervention by the prosecution in response to allegations of VAW
Interventions
Coordination between
prosecutors and other agencies
Quick turnaround in applying for
protection orders
Available
Frequency
%
17
32.1
15
28.3
Not available
Frequency
%
27
50.9
31
58.5
Not sure
Frequency
%
8
15.1
6
11.3
Table 15: The immediate availability of judicial intervention in VAW cases
Interventions
Order of temporary custody of
children by victim/ survivor
Restraining and/ or expulsion order
against perpetrator
Order for perpetrator to undergo
intervention programmes
Prompt availability of protection
orders
Order of exclusive use of family
assets by victim/ survivor
Available
Frequency
%
35
66.0
Not available
Frequency
%
10
18.9
Not sure
Frequency
%
5
9.4
33
62.3
13
24.5
4
7.5
27
50.9
16
30.2
6
11.3
17
32.1
27
50.9
7
13.2
16
30.2
25
47.2
9
17.0
81
Table 16: The immediate availability of intervention by the medical and social services
Interventions
Quick and effective medical
attention
Emotional, psychological
assistance
On scene social services
assistance
Available
Frequency
%
22
41.5
Not available
Frequency
%
26
49.1
Not sure
Frequency
%
5
9.4
12
22.6
32
60.4
8
15.1
22
41.5
21
39.6
7
13.2
Table 17: List of factors communicated by or complained about by victims to NGOs
Factors
(F= frequency)
Fear of repercussions from perpetrator
F
50
Exist
%
94.3
Not exist
F
%
1
1.9
Not sure
F
1
%
1.9
Negative financial consequences
48
90.6
1
1.9
3
5.7
Lack of confidence in police
47
88.7
1
1.9
3
5.7
Lack of confidence in judiciary
47
88.7
2
3.8
2
3.8
Social stigma
45
84.9
4
7.5
2
3.8
Fear loss of housing
44
83.0
7
13.2
1
1.9
High cost of legal action
42
79.2
6
11.3
4
7.5
Lack of support of extended family
43
81.1
3
5.7
4
7.5
Lack information on options
42
79.2
3
5.7
3
5.7
Fear loss of child custody
40
75.5
8
15.1
3
5.7
Negative legal consequences
34
64.2
14
26.4
3
5.7
Non-availability of VAW services/NGOs
31
58.5
16
30.2
4
7.5
Act not legally recognised as crime
31
58.5
19
35.8
2
3.8
Absence of mediation
27
50.9
21
39.6
2
3.8
Fear of deportation
22
41.5
17
32.1
9
17.0
Table 18: Factors that have deterred women from seeking help
Factors
N
Mean
Lack confidence in judicial process
51
4.02
Lack confidence in police
51
4.00
Social stigma
47
4.00
Negative financial consequences
49
3.98
High cost of legal action
49
3.94
82
Fear loss of child custody
44
3.93
Fear repercussions from perpetrators
49
3.88
Fear loss of housing
45
3.84
Lack of information on options
46
3.72
Lack support of extended family
49
3.45
Act not legally recognised as crime
43
3.51
Non-availability of VAW service providers
43
3.40
Fear deportation
32
3.38
Negative legal consequences
41
3.32
Absence of mediation
41
3.17
Table 19: Level of agreement to responses of government in cases where victim/survivor is unable or refuses to
continue with prosecution
Level of agreement
N
Mean*
49
3.31
Government’s response
Proceed with prosecution but excuse the victim/ survivor from
testifying
Provide mediation or alternative dispute resolution processes to the
victim/ survivor
Enforce mandatory no-drop policy
Drop prosecution
Punish victim/ victim survivor (e.g presumed to have lied in her
complaint)
Deny protection under the law to the victim/ survivor for failure to
cooperate
Prosecute the victim/ survivor for failure to cooperate
49
3.22
50
51
49
2.96
2.51
1.88
48
1.79
49
1.45
*Based on a score of 1 (strongly disagree) – 5 (strongly agree).
Table 20: Presence of certain attitudes and sentiments amongst police, prosecutor and judiciary officials in cases
of VAW
Police
N
Mean*
Sentiments
Prosecutor
N Mean*
Judiciary
N Mean*
Preference to 'talk it out'
with perpetrators
50
3.94
50
3.22
48
3.29
Overall
mean*
3.48
Need to protect the
institution of the family
50
3.80
50
3.42
50
3.48
3.56
Tolerance of VAW
50
3.02
50
2.94
50
2.84
2.93
Blaming the victim/ survivor
Overall Mean
51
3.49
3.56
51
3.08
3.17
50
2.96
3.14
3.18
*Based on a scale of 1 (“does not accurately represent at all”) – 5 (“very much accurately represent”). A mean
score of 3 is a neutral score.
Table 21: Forms of punishments for different types of VAW
Types of
VAW
Typical
punishment
Other
punishment
Typically
Imposed by:
Whether punishment
commensurate with
crime
83
Rape
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Life
imprisonment
Death
Fine
Compensation
Court
N
40
Mean*
3.08
Rape in times
of war/
conflict
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Life
imprisonment
Death penalty
Fine
Court
17
2.71
Sexual assault
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Compensation
Social services
order
Court
36
2.50
Domestic
violence
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Informal
intervention (e.g.
police discussion
with husband)
Mandatory
attendance at
prevention/
rehabilitation
programmes
Mediation
Court
Police
Statutorily
appointed
agencies
37
2.11
Trafficking
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Death penalty
Life Imprisonment
Compensation
Court
32
2.91
Sexual
harassment
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Disciplinary
action (including
warning)
Social service
order
Compensation
Court
Workplace
authority
32
1.91
Forced
marriage
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Nullity of
marriage order
Warning
Preventive order
Court
9
2.05
Child
marriage
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Nullity of
marriage
Compensation
Court
21
2.24
Marital rape
(Unpunished due
to absence of
law or where law
in existence, yet
to be
implemented)
Multiple-terms
imprisonment
Fine
Social service
order
Preventive order
Court
23
2.31
Female
genital
mutilation
(Unpunished due
to absence of
law)
Imprisonment
Administrative
order prohibiting
the practice
Fine
Compensation
Court
Government’s
health
agencies
9
2.78
84
Disfiguring
attacks
Multiple-terms
Death penalty
Court
26
2.85
imprisonment
Compensation
Fine
*Based on a scale between 1 and 5 with 1 representing highest disagreement and 5 highest agreement.
Table 22: The adequacy of typical punishments for each types of violence
Types of VAW
Prevent recidivism
Mean
Rehabilitate perpetrator
t-value
Sig.
Mean
Deter others
t-value
Sig.
Mean
t-value
Sig.
Rape
2.41
12.23
.000
2.08
23.52
.000
2.15
10.79
.000
Rape in times of
war/ conflict
Sexual assault
2.33
7.45
.000
2.00
6.73
.000
2.29
6.96
.000
2.08
11.61
.000
2.03
13.29
.000
2.03
11.83
.000
Domestic
violence
Trafficking
2.08
12.20
.000
2.00
11.57
.000
1.87
11.29
.000
2.38
12.30
.000
2.00
10.87
.000
2.18
11.37
.000
Sexual
harassment
Forced marriage
2.15
11.94
.000
1.88
10.25
.000
1.87
10.51
.000
2.20
8.90
.000
2.10
8.77
.000
2.05
8.00
.000
Child marriage
2.33
8.97
.000
2.04
8.91
.000
2.09
7.97
.000
Marital rape
1.36
9.08
.000
1.68
8.89
.000
1.83
8.92
.000
2.5
5.75
.000
2.33
6.205
.000
2.46
5.18
.000
2.84
12.42
.000
2.28
12.18
.000
2.36
10.97
.000
Female genital
mutilation
Disfiguring
attacks
Overall Mean
2.24
2.03
2.10
Table 23: Rehabilitative punishments provided and should be provided for perpetrators of VAW
Forms of punishment
F = frequency
Provided
Not provided
Should be
provided
F
%
Shouldn’t be
provided
F
%
F
%
F
%
Counselling
24
45.3
16
30.2
43
81.1
0
.0
Rehabilitation
16
30.2
22
41.5
39
73.6
2
3.8
Support group
14
26.4
23
43.4
39
73.6
1
1.9
Community service
14
26.4
25
47.2
40
75.5
1
1.9
Anger management
11
20.8
30
56.6
42
79.2
3
5.7
Table 24: Redress availability to victims/survivors of VAW
Group
Yes
F
Physical harm
Cost of children
Medicine
Legal and expert
Mental harm
Material damage
No
%
34
30
28
25
24
20
F
64.2
56.6
52.8
47.2
45.3
37.7
Not sure
%
14
14
16
19
19
40
F
26.4
26.4
30.2
35.8
35.8
45.3
%
0
3
2
2
4
2
0.0
5.7
3.8
3.8
7.5
3.8
85
Psychological/mental services
Moral harm
Lost opportunities
19
17
17
35.8
32.1
32.1
20
22
26
37.7
41.5
49.1
6
7
4
11.3
13.2
7.5
Table 25: Who bear the cost of the processes of redress?
Processes
Own
F= frequency
Free
Legal aid
Both Own &
legal aid
F
%
F
%
F
%
F
%
2
11.8
2
11.8
4
23.5
1
5.9
4
50.0
2
25.0
0
0.0
1
12.5
3
37.5
3
37.5
0
0.0
0
0.0
10
33.3
3
10.0
10
33.3
6
20.0
Administrative tribunals
3
33.3
0
0.0
0
0.0
1
11.1
Redress granted during
criminal tribunals
Legally sanctioned
community and religious
councils and tribunals
Vigilante community
justice
Total
5
27.8
4
22.2
5
27.8
1
5.6
3
23.1
6
46.2
0
0.0
0
0.0
1
11.1
3
33.3
1
11.1
0
0.0
31
27.7
23
20.5
20
17.9
10
8.9
Victim compensation
scheme
Truth and reconciliation
tribunals
Not legally sanctioned
community and religious
councils and tribunals
Court action for civil
remedies
Table 26: The most important redress for different types of harm/loss
Forms of redress:
Monetary
(%)
Apology
(%)
Physical harm
64.7
21.6
Promise
to cease
(%)
43.1
Mental harm
51.0
31.4
37.3
23.5
29.4
5.9
60.8
Lost opportunities
84.3
15.7
13.7
23.5
52.9
5.9
35.3
Material damage
86.3
13.7
17.6
13.7
51.0
3.9
45.1
Moral harm
43.1
56.9
21.6
49.0
23.5
7.8
41.2
Legal and expert
80.4
2.0
5.9
23.5
29.4
0
27.5
Medicine
80.4
2.0
7.8
23.5
29.4
3.9
19.6
Psychological/mental
services
72.5
11.8
11.8
13.7
29.4
3.9
21.6
Cost of children
76.5
7.8
17.6
13.7
35.3
3.9
41.2
Type of harm/loss
86
Disclosure Restitution
of truth
(%)
(%)
15.7
23.5
Symbolic
tribute
(%)
2.0
Punish
perpetrator
(%)
82.4
Table 27: The effectiveness of the available restitutions for acts of VAW in restoring the losses to victim/survivor of
VAW
Types of losses
Level of effectiveness
N
Mean
t-value
Sig.
Citizenship
32
2.72
11.199
0.000
Liberty
40
2.73
11.887
0.000
Reintegration into communal and family life
38
2.68
12.560
0.000
Economic loss
40
2.60
12.679
0.000
Social standing
39
2.64
12.068
0.000
Property and place of residence
40
2.46
12.262
0.000
Employment
40
2.33
11.073
0.000
87
COUNTRY
Table 28: Existing measures and practices in dealing with VAW and proposed best practices, by country
EXISTING MEASURES AND PRACTICES
PROPOSED BEST PRACTICES
Bangladesh
Domestic Violence (Protection and Prevention)
Act 2010
Multi-sectoral Programmes on Violence Against
Women (ongoing).
Anti-Dowry Prohibition Act 1980
Victim Support Centres – provide emergency support
to survivors, and more sensitive police responses
Women and Children Repression Prevention Act
2000
Prevention of Oppression against Women and
Children Special Act 2003
Penal Code 1860 (s.375 on rape)
Legal aid is available in VAW cases
Multi-sectoral programmes (legal, counselling)
Trauma Counseling Centre for psychosocial
treatment and services for victims
Awareness activities through Religious Leaders in
the community
Awareness raising programmes for government
officers on domestic violence with extensive followup
Micro-financing the hard-core poor women in rural
Bangladesh with very minimal interest and long
repaying time in order to make self-sufficient
(ongoing).
Increasing the literacy rate of girls (ongoing) [to
educate on rights and prevention].
[Proactive programmes that promote] attitudinal
change and cultural reforms [especially in relation to]
religious misinterpretation about relationship between
men and women relationship and the detrimental
perception about their roles in society.
Awareness activities through Union Parishads
(smallest rural administrative and local
government units)
Economic Empowerment Program for Women for
rural area
Government has district and upazila level VAW
prevention committee comprising different type
of stakeholder
Ministry of Women and Children Affairs - two help
lines are open 24/7 for constant support.
Zero tolerance violence-free committee (police
identifies committee and then the Department of
Women conducts training on legal awareness
and economic empowerment)
Fiji
A coordinated national action plan of systematic
awareness-raising
Mainstreaming education on equality, citizenship,
violence, gender, laws and human rights [by involving
multiple such as the education sector, private
organisations, media, communities and individual
women and men].
[Programmes leading to] attitudinal change [that
target sections of society from different ages]
Increasing women’s political, economic and public
participation. Due to the highly militarized and
patriarchal State
Hong Kong
88
CEASE Crisis Centre: A centre of one-stop service
to sexual violence. It consists of a shelter and
hotline for domestic violence victims and other
crises. This is the only shelter that accepts men
and pre-op trans women. This centre also does
Emulate Domestic Abuse intervention Project in
Duluth, USA in the development of coordinated
community response to domestic violence,
particularly the pro-arrest policy.
some DV awareness raising program for same-sex
couples.
The department of social welfare runs a hotline
for people encountering domestic violence.
Harmony House: Sexual-orientation-friendly
domestic violence service provider. It consists of
hotline, shelter and counselling services for victims
and perpetrators [but not all of the services are
directly funded by government].
The government has a community-messageagainst-domestic-violence programme which is
shown in public transport system and on TV.
India
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence
Act 2005
Awareness raising program targeting women who
love women within the local lesbian community is
necessary, which is now not funded by local
government. (DV rate is high amongst lesbian couples
but a very low number of survivors reach out for help
due to fear of prejudicial treatment by service
providers).
Provision of adequate shelter that can
accommodate the number of complaints of VAW
Training for the frontline workers and police about the
sensitivity on people of different sexual orientations
and gender identities is also important. (There are still
complaints about frontline workers and police not
regarding domestic violence of same sex couples as
domestic violence, thought there is legislation since
2010).
Gender Resource Centres (ongoing)
Free legal aid
Certain sections of the Indian Penal Code put the
onus on the husband’s family if a woman dies in
suspicious circumstances during the first few years
of marriage. A similar onus is placed on the
accused if it is a custodial rape.
Gender Resource Centre provides training and
legal support and empowers women and
adolescents through legal aid, livelihood options
and educational opportunities.
There are special cells created at the police
stations where any woman who has
encountered violence can not only lodge a
complaint but also be counselled by social
workers.
UJJAWALA: A Comprehensive Scheme for
Prevention of Trafficking and Rescue,
Rehabilitation and Re-integration of Victims of
Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation.
SABLA- Scheme for the empowerment of
adolescent girls. The basic objectives of the
scheme are to enable self-development and
empowerment of adolescent girls, improvement
in their health and nutritional status, spread
awareness about health, hygiene, nutrition,
adolescent reproductive and sexual health,
family and child care. The programme also aims
at upgrading their home-based skills, life skills and
vocational skills. The project will also include
bringing back the out-of-school adolescent girls
under the ambit of formal and non-formal
education. The adolescent girls will also be
guided about the existing public services, such as
primary health centres, post offices, banks, police
stations and others.
National and state commissions for women
Special courts for domestic violence cases
Establishment and implementation of right of
occupation of DV survivors to matrimonial residence
(regardless of title of property)
One-stop crisis centres wherein women can receive
mental, physical, and legal support in the aftermath
of an incident
Awareness programme and putting VAW high on
agenda of all levels of governance (municipalities,
village panchayats, town planners and elected
representatives). It is only when women’s safety
becomes part of the physical planning process and a
responsibility of contemporary opinion makers (the
elected representatives) that action against VAW will
yield impact.
Adequate shelter homes
Encourage formation of strong peer groups amongst
the women to provide support to each other
Maintaining a data base of VAW and response
mechanisms of service providers, including the police
and the judiciary. This information should then feed
into state and national legislatures for allocation of
resources, formulation of schemes and policies
Public messages that condemn VAW, sexuality
education programmes in schools, financial and
political support given to initiatives that challenge
cultural norms that project women as second class
citizens.
Equal inheritance for male and female children in the
parental property – this should be a right irrespective
of the status of marriage of the parents
89
At the state (Gujarat, India) level the government
has a program which was earlier called family
counselling centres. While it discouraged litigation
or breakup of family it was focused on the issue of
domestic violence against women. In recent
times these have been converted into multipurpose women’s centres aimed at broad
empowerment including the issue of VAW88.
Healthy relationship workshops in schools and
colleges
Programmes that provides equal opportunity and
equal participation for women in every sphere will
bring down VAW
The government has established all- women
police stations in the state of Tamil Nadu, India.
There are laws that specifically provide for
compensation for the Dalit and tribal women in
cases of VAW.
The Maharashtra State government has enacted
a Government Regulation (GR) that required rural
homesteads (living homes) to be registered on
the basis of joint ownership of husband and wife.
The couple must be legally married, co-habiting
and in a heterosexual relationship.
Mahila Panchayat (a Panchayat, or an Assembly
of five elders, who are women, where other
women seek redress for private injustices, mostly
domestic violence and sexual harassment).
Compliance of judgement is gained through
community influence and public shaming.
A Minister’s Regulation for the empowerment of
women (Regulation No. 01 of 2006) was issued to
provide coordination of programmes for women
Indonesia
Police Regulation (No. 10 of 2007) on the
Organisation and Procedures of the Women’s
and Children’s Services Unit (UPPA) a circular (No.
659 0f 2007) on the establishment of Integrated
Sevices Centres in hospitals and victims’ services
in Community Health Centres (Pukesmas).
Engaging men and boys in programmes to eradicate
VAW.
The government’s council on the Empowerment of
Women is slowly showing successes in getting various
stakeholders to work together towards eradicate
VAW
Integrated Service Centres.
UPPA (Women’s and Children’s Services) [existing].
Establishment of centres for women and children
survivors. This is part of the implementation of a
policy of the Ministry of Women to offer
Integrated Services with a set of minimum service
standards that must be given to women and
children victims of violence.
The “socialisation of laws” on domestic violence
and trafficking to community leaders and policy
makers at local and district levels.
Gender responsive budgeting that will allow for
specific improvement measures of women’s situation
such as in education, health, economic and political
places.
Sexual and reproductive health trainings for men and
women in the communities.
Locally-contextualised media campaign.
Establishment of national commission on violence
against women
According to the respondent, this change has led to loss of focus and expertise within these centres. “The support provided
tends to remain as per provisions of the scheme and not what the woman needs. A lot of activities are taken up as specified in
the scheme and the most groups that are awarded the scheme are chosen for their political affiliations rather than expertise.”
(Respondent X, from India).
88
90
Gender mainstreaming programmes
Informational media messages; talk shows on
radios that address VAW issues; posters and flyers
on VAW
Women’s economic empowerment programmes
Education at early age the importance of gender
equality with a strong message that violence against
women and girls must not be tolerated or accepted.
Mongolia
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence
Act 2005
National Action Plan on Commercial Exploitation
of Women and Children 2005 and National
Action Plan 2007 (both yet to have any
implementation measure or budget allocated)
One of the preventative programmes, with
support from UN agencies, targets violent men
and aimed to provide counselling to influence
behavioural change.
Government provides some support for shelter
houses (very limited in number) and is working to
establish one-stop-service centres (with support
from UN agencies)
Philippines
Republic Act (R.A.) 9262 (Anti-Violence Against
Women and Their Children Act of 2004) defines all
forms of violence, provides measures and
sanctions in dealing with VAW cases.
To prevent trafficking, the government has
established means to intercept traffickers at ports.
Teenage Relationship Abuse Campaign (to raise
awareness of the issue of abuse in relationships; to
change attitudes that abuse in relationships is
acceptable and to make victims feel more confident
to report abuse and empower individuals, including
boys, to play their part in tackling the issues)
Holistic community-wide mobilisation programs aimed
at changing social norms on gendered power
relations, gender stereotypes and the use of violence.
Education and training of frontline professionals (e.g.
teachers, doctors, police and prosecutors), so that
they are able to identify and deal effectively with
violence against women and girls.
Strong accountability and capacity-building
programs for government staff at all levels and
multidisciplinary approaches to stopping and
preventing violence (with clear procedures and
responsibilities)
A comprehensive program challenging and
modifying gender stereotypes that perpetuate VAW
would be effective in changing the very roots of
VAW. This should be pursued, first and foremost, in the
schools, in communities and in the media. VAW could
be better addressed by changing or eradicating the
norms or belief system that ‘justify’ gender violence.
Under the Anti-Violence Against Women and
their Children Act of 2002 (RA 9262) and Magna
Carta of Women Act of 2009 (RA 9710), all levels
and agencies of the government are mandated
to develop gender and development (GAD)
programmes from their GAD budget which is at
least 5% of their total budget. These programmes
include trainings and awareness-raising on VAW
in the community as well as livelihood programs
aiming to strengthen economic empowerment of
women.
Information Dissemination on VAW in the Barangays
(smallest administrative division).
Awareness-raising programs in government
agencies, state universities and colleges, local
government units, hospital-based women and
children protection units
Women-empowerment or assertiveness-building
programmes through different fields of interest such as
sports, gyms or associations.
The establishment of Women’s Desk in every police
station
To harness the full potential of the laws (Philippines has
many), women and men should be educated on the
spirit and provisions of these laws. Women, especially,
should be aware of their rights and remedies, to
empower them.
Gender and Development (GAD) Budget for
each local legislative agency
91
Gender Program that advocate women's rights
by Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD) during Women's day
Solomon
Islands
A policy and action plan on the elimination of
VAW89
The Oxfam Standing Together Against Violence
program in Solomon Islands is a good practice as it
works strategically with policy makers, service
providers and community-level stakeholders
Taiwan
The Taiwan central government, in its Ministry of
Interior’s website
(http://dspc.moi.gov.tw/lp.asp?CtNode=558&Ct
Unit=94&BaseDSD=7&mp=1) provide guidelines
on dealing with violence against children such as
how teachers could help children who witnessed
violence; how they should teach children to call
hotline 113 or to tell teachers about abuses.
Programme about healthy relationship such as the
programme conducted by the Taiwan Good
Shepherd (GS-TW) called “Non-Violence in social
relationship”
V-MEN campaign (campaign against VAW
targeted at men) was organised in 2011, which
aims to raise men’s consciousness about violence
against women.
“Help Self and Help Others” programmes (survivors
who have received help continue to practice selfhelp and also to embark on helping others by selfhelp support groups). These programmes are currently
organised by an NGO.
The government provides booklets to newly
married couple and foreign women who married
Taiwanese men, which contains information on
the hotline to call if they experience domestic
violence.
According to the respondent, the funding for the plan of action under this policy is unclear and there appears to be an
expectation that NGOs will help in funding and implementing activities.
89
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ANNEX 1
DUE DILIGENCE FRAMEWORK AND GUIDELINES
STATE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
Guidelines are critical to facilitate information analyses and increase accountability. They measure progress and
achievements; improve decision-making for the management of ongoing programmes; achieve consistency
between activities, outputs, outcomes and impacts; and identify the need for corrective or remedial action.
A. PREVENTION
Prevention includes government measures to thwart the occurrence of VAW. Good prevention programmes
provide awareness of VAW and of information services and legal protection available post the incident. They also
target underlying risk and causes of VAW and often include training and education campaigns.
1.
Targeting Underlying Causes of VAW
Effective preventive strategies address underlying causes of VAW and seek to eliminate tolerance and
acceptance of VAW while incorporating a human rights framework, exposing the relationship between gender
inequality and VAW.
2.
Transforming Society: Changing Mindsets and Modifying Behaviour
Effective preventive measures not only specifically target VAW but also aim to transform social perceptions,
attitudes and behaviours that cause, support and tolerate VAW. They must be aimed at changing mindsets and
modifying behaviour to reject VAW, its justifications and excuses. These are embedded in gender inequality,
gender discrimination and negative socio-cultural-religious perceptions of women that reinforce hegemonic
notions of masculinity and femininity and the institutions that propagate them.
3.
Eliminating Risk Factors
Preventive programmes must challenge negative socio-cultural norms and those that support male authority and
control over women and sanction or condone VAW. Strengthening women’s economic and legal rights and
eliminating gender inequalities in access to formal wage employment and secondary education would lay
concrete foundations in preventing VAW.
4.
Providing Outreach and Ending Isolation
The availability of a social network increases women’s autonomy and their ability to seek support and assistance
to stop the violence. Outreach programmes that can end the isolation of and remove the stigma suffered by
victims/survivors are required. Society must also be involved in the struggle against VAW, to imbue a sense of
vigilance against and a willingness to show disapproval of the same.
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5.
Broadening the Scope of VAW Programmes
Stereotyping and gender roles are learnt from an early age. It is important that preventive programmes address
different forms of VAW and target all stakeholders and beneficiaries. Success can be evaluated by verifying if
governments’ preventive programmes have benefitted intended target groups.
6.
Formulating Comprehensive Laws and Constitutional Guarantees
Enacting holistic and comprehensive legislation is critical to States assuming accountability for VAW. It is through
laws that the necessary components of due diligence and implementing measures are articulated. Competent
implementation and enforcement is an effective prevention strategy, particularly if perpetrators are certain that
their actions will not go unpunished.
7.
Collecting Data and Designing Programmes
Preventive programmes must be based on comprehensive, reliable data on prevalence, causes and
consequences of VAW. Data collection is important for shaping VAW interventions; data can provide insights to
shape prevention measures and monitor and assess prevention programmes.
8.
Incorporating Intersectionality and Providing for At-risk Groups
VAW does not affect all women equally. Certain groups of women are more vulnerable than others or face
greater challenges in accessing the State’s laws, programmes and processes.
9.
Maintaining a Sustained Strategy
A sustained strategy is ideally institutionalized and not a seasonal response. It should involve actions across
different environments that target local communities, workplaces, schools and faith institutions; working with
individuals or families is also crucial. Mechanisms to monitor implementation, including qualitative surveys to
ascertain the prevalence and forms of violence, could further ensure that such strategies remain current and
effective.90 NAPs and institutional mechanisms are considered good sustained strategies.
10. Collaborating with Women’s/Feminist Organizations
Women’s mobilization over VAW has brought VAW out from the private sphere where the law and culture had set
up justifications for State non-intervention to stop VAW. While States bear the obligation to end VAW, cuttingedge research and strategies are often undertaken by civil society experts and organizations. Collaboration
between States and the women’s movement has undoubtedly strengthened and will continue to strengthen the
struggle to end VAW.
B.
PROTECTION
Protection against VAW focuses on avoiding the recurrence of further violence and ensuring that victims/survivors
receive adequate and timely services. This is sometimes called secondary prevention. It includes the availability
and accessibility of services such as hotlines, shelters, medico-psycho social services and protections orders. It
also includes adequate training and sensitization of first responders.
1.
Ensuring Availability of and Accessibility to Coordinated Support Services
Medical (including psychological) interventions and social support are essential in protecting victims of VAW.
Coordinated and multi-sectoral support services offer women options to stop the violence; prevent its recurrence;
90
For example, Morocco and Azerbaijan.
94
understand, address and challenge the factors responsible for it; treat the trauma (mental and physical) and
provide short-, medium- and long-term measures to transition out of the violent situation and re-build lives.
2.
Ensuring Availability of and Accessibility to Protection Orders
Laws that facilitate protection or restraining orders to help women escape violence underscore their right to live
free from violence. Such laws must define VAW broadly and should be applied immediately upon occurrence of
VAW. Protection orders should protect victims/survivors from further violence while allowing them to continue their
daily routines with as little interruption as possible, including staying in their homes (if desirable), continuing to work,
taking their children to school and using vehicles.
3.
Upholding the Duties of First Responders
On learning of any occurrence of VAW, the police, medical personnel and other first responders must act swiftly
and immediately to comply with their due diligence obligation. Their ability to respond urgently and in a specific
manner greatly reduces the risk of further harm to victims/survivors and inspires confidence in the system’s ability
to arrest VAW.
4.
Fostering Positive Attitudes and Sensitization through Sustained Training
It is crucial to equip first responders with skills to effectively intervene in cases of VAW. These skills include assessing
risks for victims, identifying early signs of violence before it escalates and conducting coordinated risk assessment
of the crime scene before adopting protective measures.
5.
Implementing a Multi-sectoral Approach and Coordinating Services
The delivery of protection services provided by the government is enhanced through multi-sectoral approaches
with coordinated responses and delivery of services. Swift action by the police, medical and social services as
soon as a case of VAW is reported helps victims/survivors deal with the legal process and increases prosecution
rates.
C.
PROSECUTION
Prosecution refers to the duty of exercising criminal jurisdiction over those responsible for human rights abuses.
Steps must be taken to ensure that the prosecutorial process is as non-traumatic for victims/survivors as possible.
Investigation refers to the duty of undertaking effective action to establish the facts related to a VAW incident.
This duty must be exercised in an effective, prompt, impartial and thorough manner.
1.
Addressing Victims’ Needs and Fears
Effective State measures respond to VAW as a crime and a violation of human rights. Investigators and
prosecutors should be able to take into account the perceptions, needs and desires of victims/survivors and the
State’s need to enforce law and order, eliminate VAW and comply with its international and, where applicable,
constitutional obligations to guarantee fundamental liberties.
2.
Developing Policies to Reduce Attrition
The conversion rate from reporting VAW to conviction of perpetrators is low because of victims’ fear of
repercussions and retribution; negative experiences with the legal process; negative social perceptions and bias;
inefficient prosecution and unprofessional conduct. States should adopt adequate measures to address these
factors without diminishing the integrity of VAW victims/survivors.
95
3.
Ensuring the Police Provide Positive Early Victim/Survivor Engagement
Positive and early engagement with the police and special VAW units may encourage victims/survivors to take
action to stop the violence. Speed and quality of police intervention is crucial in engendering confidence in the
legal process.
4.
Establishing the Affirmative Duty to Investigate
Investigation is critical in cases of VAW ‘as deficiencies often prevent and/or obstruct further efforts to identify,
prosecute and punish those responsible’.91 The obligation to investigate human rights violations is one of means
rather than results.92 States must adopt effective measures to ensure that legal remedies and procedures are
accessible to victims/survivors of VAW and authorities act within a legal framework where due process
guarantees, for victims and perpetrators, are respected.
5.
Establishing the Affirmative Duty to Prosecute
a.
Ensuring Fair Burden of Proof and Evidentiary Standards
The prosecutor has the right to decide on whether to proceed with prosecuting a ‘minor’ offence.
Otherwise reasonable, this discretion is problematic in cases of domestic violence, which often
consists of repetitive offences that may be considered ‘minor’ on their own.
b.
Ensuring Sensitivity to Confidentiality and Privacy Issues
Women who decide to report violence often have to deal with harsh treatment, long delays in court
hearings, and practices such as the release of identifying particulars (especially in child sexual abuse
or mass rape during conflict) that are humiliating and dangerous. States must institute procedures
that protect the privacy of women from public disclosure or overly harsh treatment during the
investigation and prosecutorial process.
c.
Providing Legal Aid and Support
Legal advice and free legal assistance are rights and not privileges afforded to those in need and
victims/survivors of VAW in particular have the right to legal advice and free legal assistance.
d.
Reducing Delay at Every Level of the Prosecutorial Process
Systemic delay is another primary reason for the low conviction rate in cases of VAW. States should
establish measures to check delay and expedite the prosecution of such cases.
6.
Fostering Confidence in the Police and Judiciary
Police and prosecution offices play pivotal roles in determining the outcome of formal intervention in cases of
VAW. Decisions to investigate and prosecute and the manner of investigation and prosecution affect the
confidence victims/survivors place in the criminal justice system, shaping their participation in its success.
7.
Establishing Specialized Prosecutors and Courts
Conventional courts and justice systems are not necessarily knowledgeable about VAW. States should establish
specialized police units, prosecutors and courts (or judges) to work exclusively (or primarily) on VAW. When staffed
IACHR, The Situation of the Rights of Women in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico: The Right to Be Free from Violence and Discrimination.
OEA/Ser.L/V/II.117, Doc. 44, 7 March 2003, para. 137. The investigation also serves other purposes, for example, to ascertain the
right to truth. The IACHR has written that any victim of a violation of human rights is entitled ‘to obtain clarification of the events
that violated [his or her] human rights and the corresponding responsibilities from the competent organs of the State, through the
investigation and prosecution (…)’. IACHR, Case of Barrios Altos v. Peru. Judgment of 14 March 2001. Series C No. 75, para. 48.
92 Rosendo-Cantú et al. v. Mexico, supra note 238, para. 175).
91
96
with trained personnel and supported by adequate funding, such units can provide a more conducive
environment for women to seek legal recourse.
8.
Considering Alternative Dispute Resolution (Mediation/Conciliation)
Mediation, restorative justice and other alternative approaches to adjudicating GBV remain sources of
opportunity and concern. Mediation should not be made available for grave and serious offences or with the
aim of exculpating perpetrators, such as allowing them to pay off or marry rape or abduction victims/survivors. If
victims/survivors are emotionally stable, free from risks and coercion, and able to make an informed decision and
mediators receive proper training, mediation can be a viable option, especially since prosecutorial processes are
often long, expensive and traumatic.
9.
Ensuring that Plural Legal Systems Align with International Human Rights Norms and Standards
Countries must ensure that customary or religious legal systems are interpreted to meet contemporary and
changing dynamics, values and challenges. ‘[I]t is important that States strongly condemn violence against
women and refrain from invoking any custom, tradition or religious consideration to avoid their obligations.’93
10. Developing a Multi-sectoral and Multi-agency Approach
Close collaboration between specialized prosecutorial offices, the police and medical/health service providers,
including trauma and VAW specialists, show increased prosecution rates.
D. PUNISHMENT
Punishment refers to the obligation of imposing a sanction on perpetrators as a consequence of their having
committed VAW. Sanctions can be civil, criminal, administrative or ‘other’ (e.g. community or social sanctions)
and at minimum, must ensure negative consequences for perpetrating VAW.
1.
Holding Perpetrators Accountable: Certainty of Punishment
Punishment is a mechanism by which States ensure that those who commit violence face its consequences,
thereby facilitating women’s realization of the right to be free from any acts of violence. Holding perpetrators
accountable for VAW is fundamental to the principle of punishment: it creates a level of predictability and
certainty, suggesting that perpetrators will have to answer for VAW. Failure to do so sends the message to society
that VAW is both tolerated and tolerable.
2.
Ensuring Punishment is Commensurate with Offence
Holding perpetrators accountable for VAW is fundamental to the principle of punishment as it creates a level of
predictability and certainty and sends the message that VAW is not tolerated or justifiable. States must also enact
laws that establish sanctions commensurate with the severity of the offence (including aggravating factors) and
meet international standards.
3.
Meeting the Goals of Punishment: Preventing Recidivism, Rehabilitating Perpetrators and Deterring
Others
Punishment should prevent recidivism, rehabilitate perpetrators, prepare them for reintegration and deter others
from committing similar offences. Sentences that do not meet these goals foster recidivism and a sense of
impunity, normalizing VAW in our collective imagination and resulting in its re-enactment in our daily lives.
93
A/RES/61/143 dated 30 January 2007, United Nations General Assembly resolution 61/143 of 2006, para 5.
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4.
Broadening the Available Punishment Regime beyond Incarceration, Where Appropriate
Incarceration appears to be the most common form of punishment for all forms of VAW. Sometimes, however, it
may not be the only ‘punishment’ sought or preferred by victims/survivors. Although many advocates have mixed
reactions to alternatives, they generally agree that these deserve consideration. Where appropriate, States could
consider laws that allow judges to impose other punishments in addition to or (more rarely) instead of
incarceration, provided that the safety and security of victims/survivors can be guaranteed.
5.
Ensuring Punishment is Premised on the Principle that VAW is Not Justifiable/Excusable
Punishment focuses on making perpetrators accountable for their actions. Due diligence in punishment focuses
on perpetrator accountability and is premised on perpetrators being held responsible and, therefore, liable for
their actions. States should ensure that punishment is premised on VAW not being justifiable or excusable.
E.
PROVISION OF REDRESS AND REPARATION FOR VICTIMS/SURVIVORS
Redress and reparation imply any form of remedy or compensation made available to victims/survivors of VAW to
address the harm or loss suffered by them. Reparation measures aim to eliminate or mitigate the effects of the
violence committed. This could take different forms, from monetary compensation and apology to symbolic
reparations.
1.
Adopting a Victim/Survivor-oriented Perspective
Reparations must fit women’s needs. Women’s participation and perspectives can help shape, monitor and
evaluate reparation schemes that best suit their living situation and needs. This process can empower
victims/survivors. States should take a broader view of harm. States could go beyond the narrow focus on
monetary compensation and punishing perpetrators as an adequate remedy and offer victims/survivors diverse
redress and reparation.
2.
Ensuring Proportionality to Gravity of Harm or Loss Suffered
Reparations should be related to the violations suffered, facts of each case, gravity of violations and
damage/harm/loss proven, and measures requested to remedy the same, with compensation provided for any
economically assessable damage, as appropriate and proportional to the gravity of the violation. Satisfaction
can include public apologies or other declarations intended to restore the rights, dignity and reputation of
victims/survivors; disclosure of truth and verification of facts; symbolic tributes; sanctions against persons liable for
violations and cessation of the violence.
3.
Assuming Responsibility for Recuperating Reparation from Perpetrators
Victims who pursue compensation from perpetrators may be exposed to further risk and trauma from continued
contact with them. Women might only rarely manage to obtain orders for compensation and even when they do,
lack of enforcement mechanisms mean that perpetrators do not pay. States should ensure victims/survivors are
compensated by assuming the responsibility for recuperating compensation from perpetrators.
4.
Working towards Institutional Reform and Transformative Change
The effect of reparation should not only be restitution, but also rectifying underlying causal factors of VAW and
discrimination. Reparations must aim to transform power relations inherent in structural discrimination to
reformulate and transform relationships that fuel violence and exclusion, such as patriarchy and racism. They must
include the State obligation to undertake institutional reforms, supported by adequate resources to effectively
prevent the occurrence of VAW and put in place mechanisms that guarantee the investigation and punishment
of VAW and reparation of victims.
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ANNEX 2
QUESTIONNAIRE TO CIVIL SOCIETY ON
STATE OBLIGATION AND DUE DILIGENCE PRINCIPLE
TO ELIMINATE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Due diligence is an important international principle. In the context of violence against women (VAW), it denotes
a State’s obligation to take ‘reasonable’ action to prevent VAW, protect victims/survivors from VAW, investigate
and prosecute incidences of VAW, punish perpetrators of VAW and provide redress for victims/survivors of VAW.
This obligation applies to the State although most instances of VAW are committed by non-State actors
(individuals not acting on Governmental authority) and within the private sphere. The principal aim of the Project
is to add content to the international legal principle of ‘due diligence’ in the context of State responsibility to
eliminate VAW. The objective is to create compliance indicators that are concrete and measurable across
regions.
ABOUT THE QUESTIONNAIRE
As part of this research we are conducting interviews and undertaking surveys with civil society/ nongovernmental organisations (CSOs or NGOs) which advocate against VAW, provide intervention services to
victims/survivors of VAW or which mission or objectives include eliminating VAW. One of the Project’s primary
research tools is this questionnaire. The questionnaire will be distributed to 6-10 CSOs/NGOs in approximately 30-40
countries. The questionnaire aims to look into existing State measures and challenges encountered by
CSOs/NGOs in their work to eliminate violence against women. The questionnaire will also probe civil society on its
perception of State action in discharging its obligation; the effectiveness of these actions; and how they can be
improved.
The findings of the report will be shared with Governments, inter-governmental organizations and civil society. We
also propose to instrumentalize the findings into manuals, tool kits and training modules for practical application.
INSTRUCTIONS
We need your help to provide information about your experiences and knowledge of laws, policies, procedures
and practices related to violence against women in your country. Unless otherwise stated, please answer the
questions based on your organisational experience, opinion, perception or knowledge. There are no right or
wrong answers. As such, there is no necessity to conduct research into academic writings, papers and books
before answering the questions although you may look up data specific to your Government/country if it helps
you to answer the questions.
Please answer all questions as comprehensively as possible, providing links and additional information where
possible. Where a box is provided, please tick or cross (√ or X) the box that corresponds with your opinion/answer.
Where relevant, you may tick or cross (√ or X) more than one box.
If you are not sure of the answer to the question, or if you don’t know the answer to the question, please tick or
cross (√ or X) “Not sure”. You may be contacted by our survey assistants should we require clarification on any of
your answers. If you do not wish to be contacted, you may indicate that you do not wish to be contacted in
question A12.
SUBMISSION OF QUESTIONNAIRES and DUE DATE
Responses to this questionnaire should be sent in electronic format to:
99
CONTENTS
As it is important to specify particular gaps, as well as good practices, we have organised this questionnaire
according to the five areas mentioned above. We would also like some basic information about your work.
A. Organisation Profile
B. Prevention of VAW
C. Protection from VAW
D. Prosecution and Investigation of VAW
E. Punishment of Perpetrators
F. Provision of Redress to Victims/Survivors
CONFIDENTIALITY
We assure you that your answers are treated in confidence and only aggregated data will be used in the final
report, unless permission is specifically obtained from you for us to attribute any answers to your organisation. As
this is a questionnaire addressed to CSOs/NGOs and not individual persons, we request that the person
completing the questionnaire must have authority to speak on behalf of your organisation.
You will also be asked if you wish us to keep your identity confidential and if you wish not to be contacted by us
for further information or clarification. Please make sure you answer these questions i.e. questions A11 and A12.
TERMINOLOGY
Good Practices : Practices that are effective and in addressing or impeding VAW and can be replicated.
Government: The government of your country or the country in which your organisation is most active; acting
either on its own behalf or acting through a government actor, such as the police. Governments include national,
state/provincial and local governments as well as any Governmental entities. In international law, the acts or
omission of all levels of Governments their agencies are imputed to the national Governments which are
generally the party held responsible under international law. Such as the obligations under CEDAW (United
Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women) which is ratified by 187
countries. Government programmes and activities also include those funded by the Government but carried out
by non-Governmental agencies. In this questionnaire acts of State or Government includes those of the
legislature and judiciary.
Helplines : Are telephone numbers which women are able to call when encountering VAW or threats of VAW
when they are in need of services. Sometimes called hotlines.
Non-state actor: Individuals whose actions cannot be imputed to the Government/State. This means the
individual was not acting on the authority, apparent or purported authority or with the sanction of the
Government/State.
One stop centres : A location where the necessary services required by victims/survivors are provided. Doctors,
medical personnel, police and counsellors are in attendance at this location. This will minimise the need for the
victim/survivor to shuttle from the hospital to the police station and other agencies.
Perpetrator : Person who commits VAW
Recidivism : Habitual falling back into crime.
Restitution : Restoration of loss suffered to the victim/survivor.
State : See ‘government’
VAW or Violence against women: Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical,
sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary
deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.
Victim/survivor : The woman impacted by VAW or against whom VAW was committed.
WEBSITE
Please see www.duediligenceproject.org for more information/clarification
100
A. ORGANISATIONAL PROFILE
A1. Name of organisation :
A2. Job position: (of person filling in form)
A3. What year was the organisation founded?
A4. Address of organisation [City, State (Province) and Country] :
A5. Website and email address (if any):
A6. This questionnaire is meant only for organisations working on issues related to violence against women. Is your
organisation involved (whether fully or partially) in the following areas (please select one or more)?
Areas of work
a. Research b. Advocacy / c. Law reform
d. Support
e. Training
Outreach
services
1. Rape and sexual assault
2. Sexual harassment
3. Domestic violence
4. VAW in cultural-religious context
5. VAW in times of war/conflict
6. Trafficking
7. Female genital mutilation
8. Indigenous (tribal) women and VAW
9. Violence against girl children
10. Other (please describe)
____________________________
A7. Does your organisation have programmes and activities in these areas? (please select one or more)
A8. Does the Government reach out to/dialogue with civil society on VAW?
A9. Does the Government financially support your work on VAW?
A10. Does your organisation monitor/assess (whether formally or informally) Government programmes on VAW?
A11. Would you like us to hold the name of your organisation confidential? (if you answer no, you are giving us
permission to disclose your organisation’s name in our reports)
A12. Can we contact you should we require further information or clarification on any of your answers?
101
B. PREVENTION
Prevention includes measures taken by the Government to impede VAW from occurring. Prevention programmes
sometimes target perceived causes of VAW and often include awareness campaigns, training and education.
B1. (a) Does the Government have prevention programmes that cover the following types of VAW? (b) If yes,
please rate the effectiveness of the programmes (1=not at all; 5=very much). XX Note: The responses include
both direct government prevention efforts and government funding to organizations.
Type of VAW
(a) Programmes exist?
Yes
No
Not sure
(b) IF YES, please rate effectiveness
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
2
3
4
5
1. Domestic violence
2. Sexual harassment
3. Rape and sexual assault
4. Abuse of girl children
5. VAW in times of war/conflict
6. Trafficking
7. Female genital mutilation
8. Disfiguring attacks (e.g. splashing
acid)
9. Child marriage
10. Forced marriage
11. Other (please specify):
__________________________
B2. (a) Does the Government have VAW prevention programmes targetted toward the following groups/entities?
(b) If yes, please rate the effectiveness of the programmes (1=not at all; 5=very much).
Target Groups Entities
(a) Programmes exist?
Yes
1. Police
2. Medical service providers
3. Community, religious or traditional
leaders
4. Men and boys
5. Young children (ages 5-10)
6. Youths and teenagers (ages 11-25)
7. Teachers
8. Women
9. Minority/vulnerable groups
(please specify) ______________
10. Others (please specify)
__________________________
102
No
Not sure
(b) IF YES, please rate effectiveness (1= not at all;
5= very much)
1
2
3
4
5
B3. Do VAW preventive measures, where they exist, have specific provisions for the following groups?
Groups
Yes
No
Not sure
1. Migrant women
2. Women refugees and displaced women
3. Women from rural areas
4. Women with psychological difficulties
5. Women with chronic diseases
6. Women with disabilities
7. Women with minority sexual orientation
8. Other (please specify):
______________________________________________________
B4. (a) In your organisational experience, do the following factors increase the risk of VAW? (1=not at all; 5=very
much); and (b) has the Government taken steps to address them?
(a) Increased prevalence?
(1 = not at all; 5 = very much)
1
2
3
4
(b) Addressed by Government?
5
Yes
No
Not sure
1. Inadequate housing for family
2. Financial instability for family
3. A woman’s lack of economic
independence
4. A woman’s low level of schooling
and education
5. Negative cultural or religious
perception of women
6. Gender inequality
7. Other (please specify)
____________________________
B5. In your own words, please provide some additional information about two of your Government programmes
on prevention of VAW?
1
2
B6. Please describe two programmes that in your opinion constitute good practices in prevention and the
reason(s) why (whether or not they exist in your country).
1
2
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C. PROTECTION
Protection keeps the victim/survivor safe from present harm. This includes avoiding the re-occurrence of further
violence and ensuring the victim/survivor receives adequate and timely services.
C1. We are interested in Government services available to women victims/survivors of VAW. For each of the
services listed below, please indicate whether each is (a) available; and (b) IF YES, approximately how many exist
nationally.
(a) Available?
Yes
No
(b) IF YES, approximately how many?
Not sure
Insert number
Don’t know
1. One-stop centres: medical, police,
and psychological/emotional
assistance/support in one place
2. Counselling and support centres
3. Legal advice or legal referrals centres
4. Telephone help lines
5. Medical and health services centres
6. Rehabilitation services centres
7. Empowerment services centres
8. Creches or child care centres
9. Immediate, safe housing/shelters
10. Other (please specify):
____________________________
(c) For each service answered YES above please indicate whether these services are accessible in terms of cost,
public transportation, availability in rural areas and services provided in local languages/dialects.
Yes
1. One-stop centres: medical, police,
and psychological assistance in one
place
2. Counselling support centres
3. Legal advice or legal referrals centres
4. Telephone help lines
5. Medical and health service centres
6. Rehabilitation service centres
7. Empowerment service centres
8. Creches or child care centres
9. Immediate, safe housing (shelters)
10. Other (please specify):
____________________________
104
(a) Cost
No
Not
sure
(b) Close to public (c) Available in rural
(d) Local
transport
areas
languages/dialect
Yes
No
Not
sure
Yes
No
Not
sure
Yes
No
Not
sure
C2. Please list two other factors that render any/each of the services listed above more/less accessible.
1
2
C3.
Please
indicate
whether
the
following
interventions
are
immediately
police/judicial/medical/social service personnel, in response to allegations of VAW?
Yes
available,
No
by
Not sure
a. Police
1. Quick response time
2. Police have authority to expel/remove perpetrator from premises
3. Police can accompany victim/survivor to retrieve belongings
4. Other (please specify) arrest (e.g., violation of order of protection)
_______________________________________
b. Prosecution
1. Quick turn around time applying for protection orders
2. Co-ordination between prosecutors and other agencies (e.g. child
protection services, medical officers)
3. Other (please specify)
_______________________________________________________
c. Judicial
1. Prompt availability of protection orders
2. Court can order exclusive use of family assets (e.g. car; social welfare
subsidy cards) by survivor/victim
3. Court can issue restraining order and expulsion (removal from premises)
order against perpetrator
4. Court can order temporary custody of children by victim/survivor
5. Court can order perpetrator to undergo intervention/prevention
programme
6. Other (please specify)
_______________________________________
d. Medical
1. Quick and effective medical attention
2. Emotional, psychological assistance
3. Other (please specify)
________________________________________________________
e. Social services
1. On scene social services assistance (e.g. child protection)
2. Other (please specify)
_________________________________________________________
C4. Please describe two programmes that in your opinion constitute good practices in protection and the
reason(s) why (whether or not they exist in your country).
1
2
105
D. PROSECUTION AND INVESTIGATION
Investigation and prosecution are actions taken by the Government when it knows of VAW incidences. It allows
victims/survivors to take steps to try to stop VAW without fear of repercussions.
D1. (a) In your organizational experience, do VAW victims/survivors complain of the following factors?; and (b) In
your organizational experience, do the following factors deter a victim/survivor of VAW from seeking help (1=not
at all; 5=very much)?
(a) Complain?
Y
N
Not
sure
(b) Deter? (1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
2
3
4
5
1. Act not legally recognised as a crime
2. Lack confidence in police (timely intervention,
efficient investigation)
3. Lack confidence in judicial process (duration of
trial, re-living incident)
4. High cost of legal action
5. Social stigma/taboo associated with the act
6. Lack support of extended family
7. Negative legal consequences (e.g. victim may
be punished if her allegation/case is not proven)
8. Fear repercussions from perpetrator
9. Lack information on options
10. Non-availability of VAW service providers/NGOs
11. Negative financial consequences (e.g. loss of
spousal support)
12. Fear loss of child custody
13. Absence of mediation/non-criminal dispute
resolution process
14. Fear loss of housing
15. Fear deportation
Other (please specify)
_________________________________
D2. At times, VAW victims/survivors are unable or refuse to continue with prosecution of their case; Governments
respond to this in different ways. Please rate the extent to which you agree with the following responses by
Governments in the event the victim/survivor is unable or refuses to continue with prosecution (1=strongly
disagree; 5=strongly agree) :
Government’s response
(1=strongly disagree; 5=strongly agree)
1
1. Drop prosecution
2. Enforce mandatory no-drop policy
3. Proceed with prosecution but excuse the victim/survivor from testifying (i.e.
prosecution is not dependent on participation of the victim/survivor)
4. Deny protection under the law to the victim/survivor (e.g. restraining order,
asylum for trafficked women) for failure to co-operate
5. Prosecute the victim/survivor for failure to
co-operate in the prosecution
6. Punish victim/survivor (e.g. presumed to have lied in her complaint)
106
2
3
4
5
Government’s response
(1=strongly disagree; 5=strongly agree)
1
2
3
4
5
7. Provide mediation or alternative dispute resolution processes
to the victim/survivor
8. Other (please specify)
______________________________________________________
D3. Please rate the extent to which the following sentiments accurately represent police and judicial responses
when dealing with VAW (1=not at all; 5=very much) :Sentiments
Police
Prosecutor
Judiciary
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
3
4
5
1. Tolerance of VAW
2. Blaming the victim/survivor
3. Preference to “talk it out”
with perpetrators
4. Need to protect the
institution of the family
5. Other (please specify)
_____________________
D4. Plural system (different laws which are applicable to different communities including religious and customary
laws):
Yes
No
Not sure
a. Is there a plural legal system in your country?
b. IF YES, …
1. is the religious/customary legal system legally recognised/sanctioned?
2. are acts of VAW typically harder to prove in the religious/customary legal system?
3. does the religious/customary legal system provide justifications for or condone
VAW (e.g. husbands committing domestic violence)?
4. which group(s)/communities does the religious/customary legal system apply to?
(please describe)
D5. Please describe two programmes that in your opinion constitute good practices in prosecution and the
reason(s) why (whether or not they exist in your country).
1
2
107
E. PUNISHMENT
Punishment is something negative imposed on the perpetrator as a consequence of his/her having committed VAW.
E1. For each type of VAW listed below, please (a) describe the typical punishment, if any; (b) describe who
imposes the punishment (e.g. court, formal or informal tribunals); and (c) rate whether the punishment is
commensurate with the crime (1=very lenient, 2=lenient, 3=commensurate, 4=harsh, 5-very harsh).
(a) Typical punishment
(b) Who imposes
(c) Commensurate with crime
(1=very lenient; 5=very harsh)
Types
(please describe)
(please describe)
1
2
3
4
5
1. Rape
2. Rape in times of
war/conflict
3. Sexual assault
4. Domestic violence
5. Trafficking
6. Sexual harassment
7. Forced marriage
8. Child marriage
9. Marital rape
10. Female genital
mutilation
11. Disfiguring attacks (e.g.
splashing acid)
12. Other (please specify)
_________________
E2. For each type of VAW listed below, please rate whether, in your opinion, the typical punishment ordered by
the court (that you inserted above) is adequate to (a) prevent recidivism (habitual falling back into crime by
perpetrators) (b) rehabilitate perpetrators and (c) deter others from committing of offence (where 1 = not at all; 5
= very much).
Forms of VAW
1. Rape
2. Rape in times of
war/conflict
3. Sexual assault
4. Domestic violence
5. Trafficking
6. Sexual harassment
7. Forced marriage
8. Early/child marriage
9. Marital rape
10. Female genital
mutilation
11. Disfiguring attacks (e.g.
splashing acid)
108
(a) Prevent recidivism
(b) Rehabilitate perpetrator
(c) Deter others
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
1
1
2
3
4
5
2
3
4
5
2
3
4
5
Forms of VAW
(a) Prevent recidivism
(b) Rehabilitate perpetrator
(c) Deter others
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
1
1
2
3
4
5
2
3
4
5
2
3
4
5
12. Other (please specify)
___________________
E3. To what extent, in your opinion, (a) do and (b) should the following defences influence sentencing (1=not at
all; 5=very much)?
Factors
(a) Do influence sentencing
(b) Should influence sentencing
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
2
3
4
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
5
1
2
3
4
5
1. Defence of provocation (e.g.
‘victim/survivor asked for it’)
2. Defence of honour
3. State of war/conflict
4. Other (please describe)
___________________________
E4. In certain instances in plural/alternate/community forms of justice, women themselves are seen as
offenders/transgressors of social norms. Where this occurs in the country in which you are active, please list (a) the
offences (e.g. adultery; improper dressing; having child outside of wedlock), (b) the typical punishment for each
offence and (c) whether the punishment is commensurate with the offence (1=very lenient, 2=lenient,
3=commensurate, 4=harsh, 5=very harsh)? Where it does not occur in your country, please tick/cross this
(a) Offence
(b) Typical punishment
(please describe)
(please describe)
(c) Punishment commensurate
(1=very lenient; 5=very harsh)
1
2
3
4
5
1.
2.
E5. Are the following programmes (a) provided by Government to perpetrators of VAW; and (b) should they be?
(a) Already provided
Yes
No
Not sure
(b) Should be provided
Yes
No
Not sure
1. Anger management/intervention or
prevention programme
2. Counselling
3. Support groups
4. Rehabilitation / reintegration
5. Community service
6. Other (please name)
____________________________
E6. Please briefly describe two ways that in your opinion constitute good practices in Government sanctioned
sentencing and punishment and the reason why (whether or not they exist in your country).
1
2
109
F. PROVISION OF REDRESS
Redress is any form of compensation or reparations available to a victim/survivor of VAW. This could take different
forms, from monetary compensation and apology to symbolic reparations.
F1. Below is a list of possible harm/loss that VAW victims/survivors may suffer. For each harm/loss listed please
indicate (a) whether the victim/survivor can seek redress; and (b) if yes, the typical redress granted.
(a) Redress
available
Yes No
Not
sure
(b) IF YES,
please indicate typical redress given
1. Physical harm
2. Mental harm
3. Lost opportunities, including employment,
education and social benefits
4. Material damage including loss of earnings
and loss of earning potential
5. Moral harm (loss of reputation)
6. Legal and expert assistance cost
7. Medicine/medical cost
8. Psychological/mental services cost
9. Cost of children’s incidentals (e.g.
maintenance)
10. Other (please specify)
________________________________
F2. (a) Which of the following processes for redress are available to the victim/survivor of VAW? If available, (b)
please indicate who bears the cost of the process.
(a) Available
Yes
No
(b) IF YES, who bears the cost?
Not sure
Own
Free
Legal aid
1. Victim compensation scheme
2. Court action for civil remedies
3. Redress granted during criminal trial
4. Truth and reconciliation tribunals
5. Adminstrative tribunals (please name)
6. Legally sanctioned community and
religious councils and tribunals
7. Not legally sanctioned community or
religious council, tribunals or patron/chief
8. Vigilante community justice
9. Other (please specify)
______________________________
F3. In theory, there are several types of redress that may be available to victims/survivors of VAW. For each
harm/loss listed below, please indicate the redress that, in your opinion, is the most important. You may check up
to a maximum of three for each harm/loss suffered.
110
a.Monetary b.Apology
c.Promise d.Disclosure e.Restitution f.Symbolic
h.Punish
to cease
of truth
tribute
perpetrator
1. Physical harm
2. Mental harm
3. Lost opportunities, including
employment, education and
social benefits
4. Material damage including
loss of earnings and loss of
earning potential
5. Moral harm (e.g. to
victim/survivor’s reputation)
6. Legal and expert assistance
cost
7. Medicine/medical cost
8. Psychological/mental services
cost
9. Children’s incidentals (e.g. after
domestic violence or rape)
10. Other (please specify)
_______________________
F4. (a) Does the Government have allocation to pay compensation to victims/survivors?
Yes
No
Not sure / Don’t know
(b).
IF YES,
1. Name of scheme :
2. How much is allocated :
3. How much is spent : _____________
Varies (not controlled by national Government) _______________
F5. Where restitution is available for acts of VAW, please rate how effective it is in restoring the losses listed below
to the victim/survivor of VAW (1=not at all; 5=very much).
(1=not at all; 5=very much)
1
2
3
4
5
1. Property and place of residence
2. Liberty
3. Employment
4. Economic loss
5. Reintegration into communal and family life
6. Citizenship
7. Social standing
111
F6. describe two programmes that in your opinion constitute good practices in redress and the reason(s)
why (whether or not they exist in your country).
1
2
THE END.
THANK YOU FOR COMPLETING THE QUESTIONNAIRE
112
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